Humberside Police 'ready to enforce' e-scooter laws
A leading Humberside Police inspector said a new campaign aims to not only inform parents on the dangers of e-scooters but also the regulations and that police “are ready to enforce them”.
Inspector Pete Musgrave, lead for Operation Yellowfin, a community safety and policing initiative launched by the force focused on tackling motorbike related crime, said there is an education gap in terms of e-scooter laws.
In response to this gap, Humberside Police are launching the ‘Is It Wheely Worth it?’ campaign to raise awareness of the dangers and legality of e-scooters ahead of the Christmas period.
It was developed in partnership with the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner and includes a video meant to explain e-scooter laws and encourage others to understand them before considering one as a Christmas gift.
The force says e-scooters are increasingly seen on festive wish lists with children as young as 12 potentially receiving them as gifts.
Privately owned e-scooters cannot be used on public roads, pavements, or other public spaces under current UK law and they can only be used on private land with the landowner’s permission. Riders need a valid UK driving licence to use them legally where permitted, such as rental e-scooters.
Insp Musgrave said they are attractive to young people because they are easy to buy “and I just think that parents don’t probably understand what they’re actually buying and the legality of that”.
He added: “We are seeing very young children riding them on a road very quickly and the dangers are evident.”
Mr Musgrave said parents will be looking at what to buy their children for Christmas “so really the aim of the campaign is to highlight the dangers of e-scooter use on public roads and pathways,” he said.
"But clearly we’re just trying to educate both parents and young people about the danger of using these e-scooters because they are fast and they have very little safety equipment on them.
“I’d really urge parents to really think about whether they need to purchase one at all. We’ve seen incidents, certainly on the South Bank, of children being hurt, coming off them either by their own volition, falling off or in contact with other vehicles and there have been some serious injuries.
"So as a parent, speaking personally as well, I would really have to think about whether that’s an appropriate present to buy at Christmas and at any other time during the year.”
A 14-year-old boy was killed while riding an e-scooter in Lincolnshire when he was involved in a collision with a Ford Transit van in September. Lincolnshire County Council agreed to take action at its latest full council meeting, but said it was a national issue which the government should act on.
Following the tragedy, it was agreed that the executive for education, Councillor Natalie Oliver, would write to all headteachers in the county “to remind them of the devastating impact these devices can have on people’s lives”.
Coun Oliver said: “It’s not just a school’s responsibility, it’s also Lincolnshire Police and the Lincolnshire Road Safety Partnership. We all need to work together. This is a national issue, the government should do more.
“They are illegal on the road, yet they’re being sold in places like Currys and other outlets.”
According to a government factsheet, there were 1,377 collisions involving e-scooters last year, an increase from 1,312 in 2024. Ten e-scooter users were killed in these collisions with 1,152 being seriously or slightly injured.
Insp Musgrave said enforcement is straightforward and “if that e-scooter is on a public road or a bridleway or a path or whatever in a public place, then we can seize that and we have got legislation to do that”.
He added: “We’re telling them about the dangers. We’re telling them about the legalities of having these e-scooters. But if people are thinking, well, it’s just an education thing, I might be able to just go and buy one and it’d be fine, then they’re sadly mistaken because the staff are ready to enforce that.
“They have the powers and the legislation to be able to seize these e-scooters very, very easily. And we are doing that and we will continue to do that because we do not want to see young people getting hurt, you know, sometimes seriously by falling off these bikes.”
“If someone is caught using an e-scooter on public roads it will be seized. Children may be referred to the police youth justice teams for further investigation and adults may be prosecuted.”
He said e-bikes can also be an issue “but really our focus is on the e-scooters because they are being ridden by very young children and they might not understand the legality of what they’re doing”.