Fires in e-bikes and e-scooters – 2022 and 2023
Published 27 August 2024
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1) Introduction and methodology
E-scooters and e-bikes are a feature of the transition to more sustainable transport. However, there are product safety risks associated with these products, related primarily to fire and explosion risk from the lithium-ion batteries they use. As the national product regulator, the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) has worked with others across government to understand the root cause of these fires and is taking action to reduce harm.
Fire and rescue service (FRS) fire investigators across the UK notify OPSS of fires involving consumer products to help earlier identification of potential product safety issues. This is done on a voluntary basis using a product-related fire notification (PFN) form available on GOV.UK when fire investigation teams identify consumer products as the most probable cause of fires and incidents.
In February 2023, OPSS re-launched the procedure, engaging with FRSs and publishing guidance to support fire investigation teams in reporting product-related fires. This has led to a steadily increasing number of FRS reporting PFNs.
The guidance page includes a template which can be used to report information on:
- the product involved in the fire, including model and serial numbers
- the age and place of purchase
- the degree of severity of the fire
Not all the fields are completed consistently and so this report focuses on those deemed to be sufficiently accurate and reliable for inclusion.
More information is available at: Product related fire incident notifications.
Additionally, London Fire Brigade (LFB) provides further information directly to OPSS via a bespoke spreadsheet.
The statistics presented in this report cover incidents that occurred in 2022 and 2023, with some further, more limited, information from 2017 to 2021.
How the data can be used
- To provide a picture of the types of fires involving e-bikes and e-scooters notified to OPSS.
How the data cannot be used
- The procedure is voluntary and so not all FRSs notify OPSS of fires involving consumer products. This means that the volumes cannot be used to estimate incidents at a national level nor be used to compare FRSs. OPSS is working with FRSs to improve their notification of incidents.
- The procedure is still being expanded and so data cannot be compared across time periods.
DBT complies with the United Kingdom Statistics Authority (UKSA) Code of Practice for Official Statistics. This has set out the revision policy for this release and will notify users when revisions are made to statistics.
2) Fires in e-bikes and e-scooters 2017-2021
OPSS received information on 121 fires that occurred between January 2017 and December 2021, involving an e-bike or e-scooter. The majority (119) were from the London Fire Brigade (LFB) and two were from other fire and rescue services (FRSs).
Forty-eight fires involved e-scooters, 32 involved converted e-bikes, 16 manufactured e-bikes, and the remaining 25 were e-bikes with unknown build.
A quarter of the fires (27) involved casualties, with a total of 57 non-fatal casualties. No fatalities were reported.
3) Fires in e-bikes and e-scooters in 2022
OPSS received information on 93 fires occurring in 2022 involving an e-bike or e-scooter. The majority of these (87) were reported by LFB.
Total number of fires involving e-bikes and e-scooters by FRS.
Type of product
Seventy-four e-bike fires occurring in 2022 were reported to OPSS, and nearly three-fifths of these (43, 58%) were confirmed to be post-market conversions to electric. In addition, OPSS was notified of 18 fires involving an e-scooter and one involving an e-unicycle. (The commentary, charts and tables below include the e-unicycle but refer to e-bikes and e-scooters for brevity.)
Figure 1: Fires involving e-bikes and e-scooters reported to OPSS by build type, 2022
Totals in Figure 1
| Build type | Number |
|---|---|
| e-bike – conversion | 43 |
| e-bike – unknown build | 28 |
| e-bike – manufactured | 3 |
| e-scooter | 18 |
| e-unicycle | 1 |
People and places
Just over two-thirds (68%) of the fires in e-bikes and e-scooters notified to OPSS took place in a dwelling, with 9% taking place in other buildings, 12% taking place outdoors and a further 5% taking place in a shed or garage.
Figure 2: Fires involving e-bikes and e-scooters reported to OPSS by property type, 2022
Totals in Figure 2
| Property type | Number |
|---|---|
| Purpose built flat/maisonette | 23 |
| House – single occupancy | 14 |
| Converted flat/maisonette | 14 |
| House in multiple occupation | 12 |
| Outdoors – street/garden | 11 |
| Shed/garage | 5 |
| Hostel/hotel | 4 |
| Commercial premises | 4 |
| Unknown | 6 |
Over a quarter of the fires (27%) started in a bedroom, and around 12% to 16% started in each of a corridor/hall, living room, kitchen or outdoors.
Figure 3: Fires involving e-bikes and e-scooters reported to OPSS by location fire started, 2022
Totals in Figure 3
| Location fire started | Number |
|---|---|
| Bedroom | 25 |
| Corridor/hall | 15 |
| Outdoors – street/garden | 13 |
| Living room | 12 |
| Kitchen | 11 |
| Garage/shed/store | 6 |
| Commercial premises | 5 |
| Stairs/under stairs | 2 |
| Balcony/walkway | 2 |
| Unknown | 2 |
The majority (91%) of the fires involving an e-bike or e-scooter were recorded with batteries or generators as the source of ignition. The source was unknown in 5% of fires.
Overall, half of the e-bikes and e-scooters were on charge at the time the fire started, however this varied by build type, with converted e-bikes the most likely to be on charge (67%). A quarter (24%) of the vehicles were not on charge and it was unknown for 27% of the fires.
Figure 4: Percentage of e-bikes and e-scooters on charge when the fire started by build type, 2022
Totals in Figure 4
| Build type | Number on charge when fire started | Total number involved in fires |
|---|---|---|
| e-bike – conversion | 29 | 43 |
| e-bike – unknown build | 6 | 28 |
| e-scooter | 10 | 18 |
Three of the fires involving e-bikes and e-scooters that were notified to OPSS involved a fatality (three fatalities in total). A third (31) of the fires involved a non-fatal casualty (61 casualties in total). It must be noted that the number of fatalities / casualties covers only instances where that information was specifically disclosed to OPSS, but the number might be higher.
4) Fires in e-bikes and e-scooters in 2023
OPSS received information on 199 fires occurring in 2023 involving an e-bike or e-scooter. The majority of these (176) were reported by LFB. The increase since 2022 is partly due to the increased engagement by OPSS with FRSs to encourage them to submit PFNs. There was, however, an increase in notifications from LFB which suggests a real increase in incidents.
Total number of fires involving e-bikes and e-scooters by FRS.
Type of product
161 e-bike fires occurring in 2023 were reported to OPSS, and two-fifths of these (74, 46%) were confirmed to be post-market conversions to electric. In addition, OPSS was notified of 36 fires involving an e-scooter, one involving a mobility scooter and one involving an electric wheelchair. (The commentary, charts and tables below include the mobility scooter and electric wheelchair but refer to e-bikes and e-scooters for brevity.)
Figure 5: Fires involving e-bikes and e-scooters reported to OPSS by build type, 2023
Totals in Figure 5
| Build type | Number |
|---|---|
| e-bike – conversion | 74 |
| e-bike – unknown build | 58 |
| e-bike – manufactured | 29 |
| e-scooter | 36 |
| Other | 2 |
Note: Other includes electric wheelchair and electric mobility scooter
People and places
One half (50%) of the fires in e-bikes and e-scooters notified to OPSS took place in a dwelling, with 18% taking place outdoors, 9% taking place in other buildings and a further 7% taking place in a shed or garage.
Figure 6: Fires involving e-bikes and e-scooters reported to OPSS by property type, 2023
Totals in Figure 6
| Property type | Number |
|---|---|
| Purpose built flat/maisonette | 44 |
| Outdoors – street/garden | 36 |
| House – single occupancy | 27 |
| House in Multiple Occupation | 19 |
| Commercial premises | 13 |
| Shed/garage | 13 |
| Converted flat/maisonette | 9 |
| Road vehicle | 9 |
| Hostel/hotel | 4 |
| Unknown | 25 |
Over a quarter of the fires (26%) started outdoors, and around 9% to 11% started in each of a garage/shed/store, kitchen, bedroom or living room. In a fifth (20%) of fires the location where it started was unknown.
Figure 7: Fires reported to OPSS by location fire started, 2023
Totals in Figure 7
| Location fire started | Number |
|---|---|
| Street/outdoors/garden | 52 |
| Garage/shed/store | 21 |
| Living room | 20 |
| Kitchen | 19 |
| Bedroom | 18 |
| Corridor/Hall | 15 |
| Commercial premises | 7 |
| Stairs/under stairs/roof space | 5 |
| Balcony/walkway | 3 |
| Unknown | 39 |
The majority (92%) of the fires involving an e-bike or e-scooter were recorded with batteries or generators as the source of ignition. The source was unknown in 8% of the fires.
Overall, just under half (48%) of the e-bikes and e-scooters were on charge at the time the fire started, however this varied by build type, with converted e-bikes the most likely to be on charge (66%). A third (34%) of the vehicles were not on charge and whether the vehicle was charging was unknown for 18% of the fires.
Figure 8: Percentage of e-bikes and e-scooters on charge when the fire started by build type, 2023
Totals in Figure 8
| Build type | Number on charge when fire started | Total number involved in fires |
|---|---|---|
| e-bike – conversion | 49 | 74 |
| e-bike – manufactured | 14 | 29 |
| e-bike – unknown build | 12 | 58 |
| e-scooter | 20 | 36 |
Seven of the fires involving e-bikes and e-scooters that were notified to OPSS involved a fatality (10 fatalities in total). A fifth (40) of the fires involved a non-fatal casualty (72 in total). It must be noted that the number of fatalities/casualties covers only instances where that information was specifically disclosed to OPSS, so this might be an under-estimate.