Nearly 500 seriously injured in e-scooter collisions in Great Britain in 2026

The use of private e-scooters is illegal in any public space, including roads and pavements. Photograph: PjrTransport/Alamy View image in fullscreen The use of private e-scooters is illegal in any public space, including roads and pavements. Photograph: PjrTransport/Alamy Nearly 500 seriously injured in e-scooter collisions in Great Britain in 2026 Ten people, all of whom were e-scooter riders, were killed in collisions compared with six in 2024 Nearly 500 people were seriously injured in collisions involving e-scooters in Great Britain last year, government statistics have shown. The Department for Transport (DfT) said there had been an estimated 1,484 casualties in crashes involving electric scooters, compared with 1,390 in 2024. It said: “Our best estimate, after adjusting for changes in reporting by police, is that there were 485 seriously injured and 989 slightly injured in collisions involving e-scooters. This compares to 428 and 956 respectively in 2024.” The statistics also showed that 10 people, all of whom were e-scooter riders, were killed in collisions compared with six in 2024. The DfT said provisional figures for all types of road casualties in 2025 indicated a “broad continuation of recent trends”, with both the overall number of casualties and fatalities declining over the past decade. There were an estimated 1,556 fatalities in reported road collisions in Great Britain in 2025, representing a decline of 3% compared with 2024. Last year, 29,911 people were seriously injured or killed, representing an increase of 4% compared with 2024 – with 127,870 casualties of all severities. Rod Dennis, the RAC’s senior policy officer, said: “Once again, this data shows that precious little progress has been made in reducing harm caused on our roads – and firmly underlines why the government’s road safety strategy is so critical. “Frighteningly, on average four people still lose their lives on the roads every single day. If this number of people lost their lives on any other form of transport, serious questions would be being asked.” In January, the Department for Transport announced a road safety strategy setting a target of reducing the number of people killed or seriously injured on British roads by 65%, and 70% for children under 16, by 2035. In 2025, 77% of fatalities were male and 61% of casualties of all severities were male. Twenty-three per cent of fatalities and 28% of casualties involved people aged 17 to 29; and 24% of fatalities and 8% of casualties involved those aged 70 and over. Under current legislation, the use of private e-scooters is illegal in any public space, including roads and pavements – rental e-scooters can be used, but only as part of the government’s national rental e-scooter trials. A government spokesperson said: “We know the law needs updating to make sure e-scooters are safe for everyone on the road and will be consulting on e-scooter regulations in the next year. “Our new road safety strategy, the first in over a decade, will save lives by tackling the root causes of deaths on our roads. “We have set an ambitious target to reduce deaths and serious injuries by 65% by 2035 and have consulted on multiple new measures, including a lower drink‑drive limit and a minimum learning period.” Explore more on these topics Road safety Road transport news Share Reuse this content