Understanding Los Angeles e-scooter injuries

Several years ago, e-scooters started dominating the LA landscape. When that happened, we began to see an increase in e-scooter injuries.

We don't see as many e-scooters around Los Angeles as we did prior to 2020. Last year, the largest e-scooter company Bird filed for bankruptcy protection. It was a devastating development for the company that was once valued at $2.5 billion.

We are still seeing e-scooter injury cases in Los Angeles involving other companies like Lime and Jump. Let me tell you, most of the time these cases involve horrible injuries.

California Vehicle Code Section 21235 spells out the rules pertaining to e-scooters. Here are some of the rules:

- Riders cannot exceed 15mph

-Riders under 18 must wear a helmet

-Riders must have a driver license or learner's permit to operate an e-scooter

-no tandem riding (ie, more than one rider). This is a huge one, and sadly, it is frequently ignored, especially by teenagers.

-no sidewalk riding

-no parking the scooter on its side such that it obstructs the sidewalk. This was the subject of a Court of Appeal case last year.

Finally, our office has seen cases where e-scooters manufactured by other companies like Segway have shut off unintentionally, resulting in horrible injuries. We discussed that issue here.

Personally, I wouldn't get near an e-scooter! They may be fun, but as a personal injury lawyer I've read too many surgical reports where surgeons had to put the injured rider back together again.

If you or a loved one was injured in a Los Angeles or Orange County e-scooter accident, or by a Segway scooter that shut off unintentionally, feel free to reach out to my office.

I’m ready to assist, 24/6.