Question to the Home Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Vere of Norbiton on 5 July (HL16754), what assessment they have made of the extent to which police forces are prosecuting anyone found illegally using an electric scooter on public highways in cases where driving licences, insurance policies or number plates are not in use.

Electric scooters fall within the definition of a motor vehicle under UK law. This means they are subject to laws requiring them to be built and used safely, including requirements for users to have insurance, driving licences, number plates, and helmets. It is illegal to ride electric scooters on the pavement and the road.

How the police enforce road traffic legislation is an operational matter for Chief Officers of police.

The Government has not made an assessment on the extent of prosecutions by the police when detecting the illegal use of an electric scooter.