With the increase in the practice of electric scooters, the number of accidents skyrockets. In 2021, road safety recorded 24 PDMS (personal motorized transportation device) fatalities in metropolitan France, which includes electric scooters, but also monowheels, Segways and other hoverboards, compared to just 7 in 2020.
One year, however, interrupted by travel restrictions linked to the health crisis. Therefore, road safety rather compares the figures with 2019, the reference year, for which there were 10 deaths in EDPM.
However, the trend seems to have stabilized significantly this year, with 13 deaths from January to July 2022, to which will therefore be added the two young people who died in Lyon. But accidents are on the rise with, from August 2021 to July 2022, a 177% increase in injuries at EDPM compared to the base year 2019.
Given the increase in practices and accidents, these are the main rules to follow, summarized in the following infographic.
• Who can ride an electric scooter?
You must be at least 12 years old to ride an electric scooter. It is forbidden to carry a passenger, a practice that is still common. This was also the case for the two teenagers who died in the Lyon accident.
• Where can we travel and at what speed?
Driving on sidewalks is prohibited and the EDPM must not exceed 25 km/h.
In urbanized areas, scooters and other EPDM must circulate on cycle paths or on roads, limited to 50 km/h or months (not by ring road or other express roads, for example). In a pedestrian zone, you have to drive at a slow pace.
Outside urban areas, it is more complex: circulation is only authorized on greenways and cycle paths, but “under certain conditions, the authority with police power can grant exceptions to the general traffic regulations by: authorizing the circulation of EDPM in the planned sidewalks that the pace of walking is respected and do not cause inconvenience to pedestrians and authorizing the circulation of EDPM on certain roads outside urbanized areas where the maximum authorized speed is less than or equal to 80 km / h”, specifies a page dedicated on the road safety site.
• What mandatory or recommended equipment?
For the EDPM driver, reflective clothing is only mandatory at night or in case of poor visibility. The helmet is simply recommended. As a reminder, cycling is mandatory for children under 12, an age group that is not allowed to ride a scooter or any other EDPM.
The scooter must be equipped with a horn, braking system, rear and side reflectors, and front and rear marker lights.
• Is insurance mandatory?
The user of an EDPM must be insured, through its civil liability guarantee, which will cover the physical and material damage that could be caused to a third party. A guarantee that can be found, for example, in a home insurance contract, but check that your contract covers this type of damage and, if necessary, take out additional insurance.
Some self-service scooter operators include this guarantee in the rental, but it is up to the user to check in the general conditions of use if this is indeed the case.
• What sanctions in case of violation?
Not respecting traffic regulations or driving as a couple exposes you to a fine of 35 euros.
This is also the amount to pay in case of not wearing retro-reflective equipment in case of poor visibility.
Driving on the pavement or letting go of the machine to exceed the 25 km/h limit can result in a fine of 135 euros.
Attention, the sanction is even greater if the machine is unrestrained from origin (“a machine whose speed by design is greater than 25 km/h”), with a fine of 1,500 euros. In Nice, for example, the police have just seized a scooter capable of reaching the mind-boggling speed of 115 km/h.
Source: BFM TV
