Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether existing legislation relating to the use of e-scooters in urban areas is fit for purpose.

In the UK, e-scooters are treated like any other motor vehicle under the Road Traffic Act which means that they are subject to laws requiring them to be built and used safely. The law was not drafted with e-scooters in mind and therefore it is not possible for most e-scooter users to comply with the legal requirements for motor vehicles as set out in this paragraph. As a result, the use of private e-scooters is illegal under current legislation, and enforcement is a matter for the police.

The Department is currently running trials of rental e-scooters in 24 areas across England, including urban areas, to assess their safety and wider impacts. The trials will help us to better understand the benefits of e-scooters and their impact on public space, and help consider options for future regulations for e-scooters.

When parliamentary time allows, the Department intends to create a Low-speed Zero Emission Vehicle (LZEV) category that is independent of the cycle and motor vehicle categories. The first beneficiaries of this new system will be e-scooters, which we intend to legalise for private and rental use through secondary legislation. No decisions have been made on the details of the regulations for e-scooters, and we will consult in due course.