Opinion: Age limit just the start of Qld e-scooter regulations

E-scooters are here to stay, but we must do everything we can to reduce the risks, writes Jillian Barrett.

Young and helmetless e-scooter riders in Brisbane

Most days as I walk around Brisbane’s streets, I see children and teenagers riding on e-scooters, often doubling up, frequently without helmets.

Every week at the law firm where I work, we receive calls from people who’ve been injured in an e-scooter incident.

Sometimes it’s the e-scooter riders themselves, but many times it’s other road users who become collateral damage.

That’s why a report this week about the rising number of Queensland children being injured on e-scooters, while alarming, is not surprising.

The call from public health experts to increase the minimum e-scooter riding age to 16 in line with most Australian states is a sensible move that will protect our kids – and potentially save lives.

Getting tough on insurance for e-scooter riders is another important step that could make a real difference.

E-scooters are not registered, so unlike cars and other forms of transport it isn’t compulsory for people to have personal insurance to ride one.

But adequate insurance will help protect riders who may have an accident – injuring themselves or someone else – especially when more and more e-scooters are being ridden on public roads and in public areas.

Without insurance, people can very quickly find themselves thousands of dollars out of pocket due to medical bills and time off work.

This financial strain adds unnecessary stress to a person when they are trying to recover from an injury.

Maurice Blackburn, the Australian Lawyers Alliance and others with an interest in public safety issues have been calling for states to mandate that private e-scooter owners have insurance, including third-party insurance.

Local councils too have a role to play, and must make sure companies who run e-scooter trials or offer e-scooters permanently have adequate insurance whenever people are riding their scooters.

E-scooter hire companies have limited insurance schemes which only covers authorised use of the vehicles.

But with widespread misuse of e-scooters, it’s time to force the companies to take out comprehensive insurance to cover all incidents the vehicles are involved in.

The federal government should also ensure road rules are updated to respond to developments.

There’s no doubt e-scooters are here to stay – but we must do everything we can to reduce the risks.

Jillian Barrett is a principal lawyer at Maurice Blackburn

Originally published as Opinion: Age limit just the start of Qld e-scooter regulations