Children as young as nine hurt in growing number of e-scooter crashes

Some hospitals are seeing more and more children with injuries from e-scooters, a new review suggests, external.

Three trauma centres - Liverpool, Manchester and Sheffield - say they have treated 477 under-16s, with the overall numbers of cases rising from fewer than 10 in 2019 to nearly 150 in 2024.

The average age of those injured was 12, with the youngest 9. Hardly any were wearing helmets.

The emergency department doctors are calling for laws to better protect children. Currently in the UK, there is no legal age restriction, speed limit or safety equipment requirement for the estimated 1.2m, external people who own private e-scooters.

Some e-scooters have a "turbo mode" setting, meaning they can reach speeds of around 28mph.

Recently, a UK teenager using one of these crashed and killed his 14-year-old friend on a busy road - one of 59 deaths involving e-scooters in the UK to date.

Jacob Calland, who was a passenger on the back, suffered irreversible brain injuries when it was struck by a BMW car in Wythenshawe, Manchester, on 19 March 2025.

Manchester Crown Court heard the teenager driving the e-scooter also sustained serious injuries, including a bleed on the brain and numerous bone fractures.

And Det Con Steve Pennington from Greater Manchester Police's Serious Collision Investigation Unit stressed e-scooters were not harmless toys and could lead to horrific consequences when used by inexperienced riders.

Most of the incidents in Manchester, Liverpool and Sheffield involved private e-scooters, often on public roads, pavements or footpaths, despite that being illegal.

Private e-scooters are meant only for use on private land, with the owner's permission.

Half of the children injured were aged between 10 and 13. Nearly two-thirds were boys.

Most injuries were sustained by the rider - only 5% were pedestrians that had been hit by an e-scooter - and the most common cause was falling off the e-scooter.

Around 11% were collisions with a vehicle, which was often linked to more serious injuries.

Injuries to the arms and legs were the most common, followed by head or facial injuries.

The doctors say tougher laws are urgently needed. Helmet use is not mandatory in the UK, unlike some other countries.

Some have described the private e-scooter situation in the UK as the "Wild West" with few following any rules.

The researchers told the Emergency Medicine Journal that schools, local councils, youth groups and road safety campaigns all have a role to play.

"Clearly, reporting these accidents is important to influence and change policy, but there must also be an onus on retailers to clearly advise customers of the law, and policymakers to regulate private e-scooters, such as with speed limiters, or mandate helmet use," they say.

To legally rent an e-scooter in the UK, which can be used on roads and cycle lanes, you must be at least 16 and hold a full or provisional driving licence, and the rental company must provide appropriate insurance. Rental e-scooters typically have a limited top speed of around 15mph.

A Department for Transport spokesperson said: "These are concerning findings, and our thoughts are with anyone who has been injured on our roads.

"It is illegal for private e-scooters to be used on roads, pavements or in other public spaces, including by under 16s, and we're bringing forward new laws to make their use safe and legal, including consulting on requirements like helmets."

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