A British backpacker has been jailed for four years in Australia after ploughing into a man while drunkenly riding an electric scooter.
Alicia Kemp, 25, was over three times the legal drinking limit when she hit and killed father-of-two, Thanh Phan, while riding an e-scooter in Perth in May.
Phan hit his head on the pavement during the incident and died two days later from bleeding in his brain, while Kemp’s passenger also suffered a fractured skull and a broken nose.
Kemp, who was on a working holiday visa at the time, was sentenced this week to four years in jail after pleading guilty to dangerous driving causing death in front of a Perth Magistrates Court.
"You, Miss Kemp, are the cautionary tale," said Judge Wendy Hughes, adding: "E-scooters are not toys."
Incidents involving e-scooters have been linked to several injuries and deaths around the world in recent months, including the death of a 25-year-old e-scooter rider who died after crashing in East London in September.
There have also been reports of several people facing jail time for behaviour on electric scooters, including at least one other case in South Korea where a rider hit and killed a pedestrian.
Given the increased use of e-scooters, as well as their potential dangers, regulatory measures have increasingly been introduced around the world in order to help keep people safe.
Here’s what else you need to know about how to ride e-scooters legally in London.
When and where can I ride an e-scooter legally in London and what are the rules?
It is illegal to ride a privately-owned e-scooter on London roads, pavements and parks, and doing so may result in prosecution.
As it stands, privately-owned e-scooters are only permitted on private land with the permission of the landowner or occupier.
However, there are various London e-scooter rental schemes that have been established by the Department of Transport which permits some use of rented electric scooters on the streets of the capital.
Rented e-scooters are permitted in the City of London and nine other boroughs across the capital, and generally observe similar permissions to bicycles.
This means e-scooters under the schemes can be used in bike lanes and on roads, but are banned from pavements where pedestrians walk. They are also prohibited on motorways.
In order to use these e-scooters, riders must also have either a provisional or full UK driving license with a category Q entitlement (meaning you’re allowed to use category AM, A or B vehicles).
When it comes to actually riding an e-scooter, riders could risk dangerous driving offences if they are caught driving an e-scooter when drunk, or intoxicated through other substances.
There aren’t any laws regarding what safety clothing to wear, but it’s generally advised that riders use a helmet and wear light coloured clothes to make it easier for motorists to see you.
What is an e-scooter?
An e-scooter, or electric scooter, is propelled by a motor. The first e-scooter, the Go-Ped, was released in 1985 by Steve Patmont.
The first motorised scooter was manufactured by Autoped in 1915.
How can I rent an e-scooter?
Since June 2021, e-scooters have been available to rent in a number of London boroughs: Camden, City of London, Ealing, Hammersmith & Fulham, Kensington and Chelsea, Lambeth, Richmond upon Thames, Southwark, Tower Hamlets, Wandsworth and Westminster.
Rental e-scooters in London are provided by two operators:
You can rent the operator’s e-scooters through providers’ mobile phone apps. You will need to:
You will then be able to find an e-scooter using the app’s location function, which shows you all e-scooters nearby. Use a QR code or vehicle ID displayed on the e-scooter to unlock it in the relevant operator’s app.
