E-scooter deaths triple this year, new figures show, as campaigners call for government to pause trials

The number of people killed in e-scooter crashes has tripled in the last year, new figures have revealed.

Data from the Department for Transport (DfT) shows 12 people died in incidents involving e-scooters in the year ending June 2022.

The figure is three times higher than for the same period in 2021, when four people died.

Meanwhile, the number of people seriously injured by or when using e-scooters has almost doubled over the last year, up from 228 in 2021's figures to 429 in 2022.

The latest DfT figures come following the death of 71-year-old Linda Davis, who died after being hit by an e-scooter in Nottinghamshire in June.

Mrs Davis is thought to be the first pedestrian to die in an e-scooter collision in the UK.

A 14-year-old boy, who witnesses say was riding on a pavement when the scooter struck Ms Davies, was questioned by police following the incident. He remains under investigation.

While it is legal to buy e-scooters in the UK, it is illegal to use privately-owned devices on roads and pavements. Private e-scooters can, however, be used on private land.

The government is currently running e-scooter rental trials in 30 different areas of the UK.

The DfT is trialling schemes, run by private providers such as Voi and Lime, in a number of major cities, including London, Nottingham and Bristol.

The government recently extended the trials, the results from which will be used to help drive future legislation on e-scooter usage, until May 2024.

What do campaigners say?

Following the latest data on deaths and serious accidents, campaigners have called on the government to immediately pause its e-scooter trials.

Sarah Gayton, from the National Federation of the Blind of the UK, told Sky News: "These figures should give a strong message to the newly appointed Secretary of State for Transport Mark Harper to urgently shut the e-scooter trials down and to rethink new legislation making private e-scooters legal to use on the public highway.

"They are the tip of the iceberg, as there are many injuries that are going unreported and undocumented for many reasons.

"These figures are also not capturing the many pedestrians, many of which are older, that are being knocked over or have very close misses with e-scooters being ridden on pavements and public spaces."

Other campaigners have called on the government to introduce legislation which will make it mandatory for e-scooters to have licence plates.

Ashe Medforth, 56, whose daughter, Holly, 5, was hit by an e-scooter while walking on a pavement and left with three broken ribs and a concussion, is head of the grassroots Just Put A Reg On It campaign.

Mr Medforth, who says he is supportive of the use of e-scooters and has been working with officials to develop methods to improve safety, told Sky News: 'We are just appalled by these figures.

'The only way of sorting this is through registration. It is very difficult when an e-scooter rider whizzes past to identify a person.

'By having a registration, police if they see an e-scooter will be able to immediately know whether it is an illegal scooter.'

E-scooter crashes up year-on-year

According to the latest DfT figures, there were 1,349 recorded collisions and 1,437 casualties involving e-scooters in the year to the end of June 2022.

The figure is an increase from the 978 crashes and 1,033 casualties recorded the year before - the beginning of which the UK spent in COVID lockdown.

Males aged 10-19 were the largest demographic in terms of those involved in crashes, followed by men aged 20-29.

And London was by far the most prevalent area for e-scooter crashes, with 463 recorded across the year, followed by Nottinghamshire (91) and Avon and Somerset (87).

According to the DfT's latest figures, the ownership status of e-scooters involved in crashes was mostly listed as 'unknown' by police forces recording the data.

Where figures were recorded, 120 of the crashes involved private e-scooters, while 133 involved rented devices.

A number of serious e-scooter crashes have made national headlines this year, including the death of Mrs Davis in Nottinghamshire in June.

In the same month, 18-year-old Mason Pitt died in hospital following a crash on a rental scooter in Slough. At an inquest in August, a coroner heard that the teenager died of a neck injury after falling off the scooter.

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In March, a 14-year-old girl died after she was involved in a crash with a van in Newham, east London.

A 21-year-old woman died four days after she crashed while riding a rented e-scooter in Northampton, while a 74-year-old man also died in Greater Manchester in January after colliding with two parked cars on New Year's Day.

What do the government and providers say?

The DfT says the main aim of its trials is to "assess the safety and wider impacts of e-scooters and development of best practice for shared micromobility services".

Under the DfT's scheme, those with valid UK driving licences are able to use rented e-scooters on roads and cycle paths.

Outside of the DfT's trial schemes, the use of private e-scooters remains illegal on public roads and pathways. Experts believe there are as many as one million e-scooter riders across the UK.

Meanwhile, police have been cracking down on private e-scooter riders, with the Metropolitan Police seizing more than 3,600 between January and November last year.

The government says it hopes to draft legislation in the future which will further regulate e-scooters, including technical requirements and expectations of users on the roads.

A Department for Transport spokesperson said: "While the number of road casualties has decreased compared with pre-pandemic levels, we're working tirelessly to improve road safety through our THINK! campaign and Road Safety Investigation Branch.

"Safety is at the heart of our e-scooter trials, looking to protect riders, pedestrians and other road users.

"While riding a privately owned e-scooter on public land is currently illegal, we are considering how best to design future regulations."

Meanwhile, Voi, one of the largest e-scooter rental providers involved in the DfT's scheme, says it has provided more than 20 million rides since the start of the trial.

The micromobility firm, which is running trials in 17 cities including Bristol, Birmingham and Northampton, said safety was its "number one priority".

A spokesperson told Sky News: "Overwhelmingly, the majority of riders ride safely and follow the rules, only a very small percentage don't follow the rules."

The spokesperson said its customers are "significantly more accountable" than private e-scooter riders due to customers having to enter their details in order to use the service.

"Voi wants a level playing field if or when legislation is introduced to legalise private e-scooters by the government, with insurance, number plates and above all, accountability," Voi's spokesperson added.

Sky News has also contacted Lime, which provides e-scooter services in London, for a comment.