Australian doctors raise alarm over electric scooter crash carnage

From Perth to Queensland, doctors are growing increasingly alarmed about the carnage they are confronting from e-scooter crashes.

Doctors across the country are growing increasingly alarmed about the scale of carnage from electric scooter crashes, with one trauma specialist saying his team now confronts “terrible injuries” daily.

Professor Dieter Weber, head of trauma services at Royal Perth Hospital, told the ABC’s Stateline program this week that his doctors confronted “broken bones, significant internal organ injuries, brain injuries, spinal cord injuries”, often leaving patients with “lasting lifelong effects”.

“The facilities here at the state trauma centre allow us to give our patients the best possible care, but sadly … the pathway to try to get back to as normal a life is not always possible with these terrible injuries that we’re seeing,” he said.

“We’re seeing the whole range of injuries from broken bones, significant internal organ injuries, brain injuries, spinal cord injuries...it’s this enormous group of patients that we’ve had to treat from injuries that are preventable.”

His warning comes as Perth residents grapple with the shock death of Thanh Phan, 51, following an e-scooter crash in the CBD.

Police allege British tourist Alicia Kemp was riding an e-scooter while intoxicated when she struck Mr Phan.

Professor Dieter Weber treats e-scooter injuries as the head of trauma services at Royal Perth Hospital. Picture: Supplied

Electric scooters are an increasingly popular method of travel. Picture: NewsWire / Ian Currie

She has been charged with dangerous driving causing death.

Mr Phan was critically injured in the crash and died in hospital on Tuesday.

Mr Phan’s family have remembered him as a “beloved husband, father of two, brother and dear friend”.

“We ask that the media respect the privacy of Thanh’s family as they grieve their loss,” the family statement said.

“We also call for a review of the governance and safety regulations surrounding hired e-scooters to help prevent further serious incidents that put lives at risk.”

The City of Perth has now suspended the use of hired e-scooters.

Lee Carroll, a friend of Mr Phan, told NewsWire he believed hired scooters “should not return”.

“We also think that any type of e-scooter shouldn’t be permitted on footpaths because that is fundamentally unsafe,” he said.

In a separate statement, Mr Carroll warned about e-scooters stationed outside bars and clubs.

“E-scooters for hire are motorised vehicles that require no license to operate and are often stationed outside bars and clubs, inviting use by people who may be intoxicated,” he said.

“This is a dangerous and unacceptable situation.”

The ban follows a vote from the City of Melbourne to outlaw hired e-scooters, though private scooters are still allowed across Victoria.

Professor Weber’s remarks also come as a new report from doctors and researchers in Queensland highlight a “significant risk” to children from e-scooters.

The report, published in the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health this week, analysed 176 child e-scooter injury cases that presented to Sunshine Coast University Hospital between January 2023 and December 2024.

The research found 71 per cent of cases were male, falls accounted for 78 per cent of crashes, while 13 per cent involved motor vehicles.

Thanh Phan died after he was struck by an e-scooter in the Perth CBD. Picture: ABC

Helmet noncompliance was documented in 42 per cent of the presentations, 12 per cent involved doubling, and 36 per cent exceeded the 25km/h speed limit.

Further, fractures occurred in 37 per cent of cases, 18 per cent required computerised tomography scans and 11 per cent sustained life-threatening or potentially life-threatening injuries.

The researchers warn e-scooter-related injuries among children are “on the rise” and want to see Queensland’s minimum age limit raised to 16 for all riders.

“While e-scooters do offer some transportation advantages, their use among children and adolescents raises significant safety concerns that cannot be ignored,” the report concludes.

“This study sheds light on the prevalence and severity of e-scooter-related injuries in this population in Queensland and underscores the importance of targeted interventions to mitigate these risks.

“We believe policymakers should urgently revisit the age limits in Queensland to ensure the safety of the state’s youth until improved safety measures such as better speed-restricted e-scooters and driving proficiency tests have been implemented and demonstrated a significant risk reduction.”

Research analysed e-scooter crash presentations at Sunshine Coast University Hospital. Picture: NewsWire / Nicholas Eagar

Queensland permits children aged between 12 and 15 to ride scooters if they are accompanied by an adult.

Despite the rise in injuries, the researchers also warn there is no dedicated data collection system in place for e-scooter trauma.

“There are no pediatric-specific data on e-scooter trauma in Queensland, leaving policy change bereft of meaningful evidence to refine and strengthen current regulations,” the report states.

Australia has a hodgepodge system of e-scooter regulations.

In May, the NSW government announced a new “framework” for e-scooter laws in the state.

The new regulations would allow e-scooters to go on shared paths, with a default speed limit of 10-20km/h, and a 20km/h speed limit on roads that are signposted at 50km/h and below.

E-scooters would be legal for independent riders over 16 years of age.

“These devices are creating an evolution in how people move around, and that’s a good thing, but we need to get the balance right,” NSW Transport Minister John Graham said last month.

“There’s still a lot of work to do, but this provides a clear path forward when it comes to properly integrating and regulating this relatively new form of transport.”

Originally published as Australian doctors raise alarm over electric scooter crash carnage