Police seize thousands of ‘lethal’ e-scooters every year

Police are seizing thousands of “lethal” e-scooters each year that are being ridden illegally, official data obtained by The Telegraph reveals.

Officers have confiscated the devices after they were ridden illegally on pavements, without insurance, while riders were drunk or high, or been involved in collisions, some of which have been fatal.

A series of Freedom of Information requests have also shown how some e-scooters have been modified to exceed the 15.5mph speed limit and used by criminals involved in drug-dealing or mobile phone thefts.

A total of 20 police forces responded to the request for statistics on annual e-scooter confiscations since 2021, producing the clearest picture yet of how this relatively new mode of transport is being abused.

In 2023, the 20 constabularies seized a total of 1,111 e-scooters. The previous year 1,134 were confiscated, a marked rise compared to the 760 taken off the streets the year before.

Although the majority of users were stopped for riding without insurance on an illegal device, some were linked to road traffic collisions and crimes.

The true extent of illegal e-scooter confiscations will be far higher because many of the 43 police forces in England and Wales do not collate the specific information or failed to respond to the information request.

In 2020, Grant Shapps, the then transport secretary, announced e-scooter trials which have now culminated in 22 regions joining the schemes. While some have welcomed the new mode of transport as environmentally friendly, others claim they are a menace because they are often ridden on pavements, create trip hazards when discarded or are prone to battery fires.

The City of London confiscates about five e-scooters a week, with some linked to phone-snatching and drug-dealing.

Its officers seized 286 e-scooters last year, a dramatic increase compared to the 46 recorded seizures the year before.

Essex Police confiscated 673 devices over the three years, mostly between March and October, when seizures ranged from between seven and 46 a month. Two collisions in the county involving e-scooters resulted in deaths between 2021 and 2022.

Norfolk Police seized 341 e-scooters over the three years. Of those, seven were connected to “non-road” crimes and needed for “evidential purposes”. A further six were involved in collisions.

Suffolk Police confiscated 187 over the three years, six of which were linked to criminal behaviour.

Both Norfolk and Suffolk constabularies recorded one e-scooter having been involved in a serious or fatal collision.

These two forces used to instruct officers to issue warnings before prosecuting repeat offenders, but are now encouraged to seize and prosecute whenever they encounter an illegally used scooter.

While illegal devices are often handed back to the owner because they can be ridden on private land, many are disposed of, auctioned off by the force or remain impounded in storage.

Sarah Gayton, of the National Federation of the Blind which has campaigned against the continued roll-out of “lethal” e-scooter trials, said Government policy had increased the risk of collision and injury for pedestrians.

“E-scooters have turned our pavements into danger zones with out-of-control riders terrifying anybody who gets in their way,” she said.

“Blind and visually impaired people are terrified to walk the streets due to this menace; they know not when one will whizz past on the pavement or pedestrian crossings.”

Only official rental scooters can be ridden legally on public roads and cycle lanes by those with a provisional or full driving licence. The rental company providing the e-scooters in the trials is required to provide insurance. While riders are encouraged to wear a helmet, it is not mandatory.

It is illegal to ride any e-scooter on the pavement. It is also illegal to use privately owned e-scooters or other so-called “powered transporters” on public roads. However, they can be ridden on private property.

A Department for Transport spokesman said anyone who breaks the law on an e-scooter faces an unlimited fine and disqualification from using them.

“Safety is our top priority and, by extending the current trials to May 2026, we’re able to continue gathering evidence to better inform regulations,” she added.