Introduction

In 2023, the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) commissioned Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG) to conduct independent research into product safety risks associated with lithium-ion batteries, chargers and conversion kits when used with e-bikes and e-scooters. This has been a significant undertaking by WMG using its specialist expertise and technical capabilities to undertake analysis of battery safety issues, product inspections and conduct laboratory testing.

The research report by WMG is a significant step forward in our understanding of the complex issues and safety challenges presented by these products. It has substantially strengthened the evidence available to OPSS and wider Government for policy development and effective regulation, where the previous evidence base was limited. OPSS welcomes the report and WMG’s commitment to delivering it. We are now carefully considering all the findings to inform our future activity on e-bike and e-scooter safety.

The use of e-bikes and e-scooters is an important feature of the move towards more sustainable and active modes of transport and it is vital that consumers can have confidence in their safety. In recent years, as the market has grown, there has been an increasing number of fires involving these products and their associated components including lithium-ion batteries, chargers and conversions kits, related primarily to fire and explosion risk from the lithium-ion batteries they use. In 2023 there were almost 200 fires reported involving these products, and 10 fatalities, in the UK.

The WMG research is part of a wider programme of activity led by OPSS to understand and address product safety risks involving e-bikes, e-scooters and lithium-ion batteries. Since early 2023, OPSS has undertaken a programme of work to understand the issues, develop data and evidence to support targeted regulatory interventions, and to raise consumer awareness of the potential risks as well as encouraging safe use and safe charging practices. We are also working closely with other Government departments, including the Home Office, the Department for Transport, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, as well as Fire and Rescue Services, the National Fire Chiefs Council and other relevant businesses and trade associations.

Learnings from the research

This research represents a significant step forward in the evidence base for lithium-ion battery and e-bike safety.

Key research themes include understanding:

• the design and operation of product and product types (specifically e-bike and e-scooter batteries, chargers and associated components)
• the existing legislation and standards that are relevant to these products
• the real-world root causes (mechanical, thermal or electrical) of e-scooter and e-bike battery fires in UK and recreating failures in repeatable, controlled test procedures
• how these products are used, including reasonably foreseeable misuse of products that could result in thermal runaway with the potential to cause fire, explosion and subsequent damage to property, injury or death

The research brings together real-world evidence and data from the UK and overseas with input from stakeholders and businesses from across the supply chain, to highlight where the greatest risks may arise and to gather suggestions on how they may be tackled.

This evidence gathering is supported by detailed technical product inspection and testing. Product teardown activity conducted as part of the research provides a clearer understanding of the risks related to lithium-ion batteries used in selected products and potential problems which can contribute to the onset of thermal runaway. The research also conducted abuse testing to understand how these products might fail. This testing generated scenarios including the impacts of overcharging and inappropriate use of products together, such as incompatible batteries and chargers, which could arise through reasonably foreseeable misuse.

The mapping of the regulatory landscape provides an overview of the various requirements and standards for these products in a number of countries. The bringing together of both technical and real-world considerations has improved the evidence available to support Government in its regulatory activity and any future policy-making.

How OPSS is tackling the problem

OPSS has been receiving regular updates on the emerging evidence from WMG’s work and has been reflecting this in its programme of activities. Having now received the full report, we are carefully considering the evidence to inform future activity, and the learnings will support Government and interested stakeholders in future actions aimed at improving the safety of these products.

Evidence and data

In addition to this research, OPSS has been gathering evidence about relevant fire incidents to inform our regulatory activities. Where Fire and Rescue Services (FRS) identify consumer products as the most probable cause of fires and incidents these can be notified to OPSS (or other relevant entities). OPSS has been working closely with the FRS to gather data regarding fires involving e-bikes and e-scooters to inform regulatory activity and in August 2024, published statistics on these fires collected between 2017 and 2023.

Regulatory activity

OPSS has undertaken a programme of targeted market surveillance checks on a range of businesses selling e-bikes, e-scooters and products used to convert standard bikes to e-bikes, including those selling online and those with a physical presence. Market surveillance and data gathering have informed considerations around the risk posed by certain products and the appropriate regulatory action to be taken. Since 2022, enforcement activities have led to 21 product recalls and 29 Product Safety Reports being published for unsafe or non-compliant e-bikes or e-scooters subject to corrective action. This includes withdrawal notices to remove from sale two dangerous models of Unit Power Pack (UPP) e-bike batteries.

Holding online marketplaces to account is another important feature of OPSS regulatory activity. We have regular regulatory dialogue with senior representatives from major online marketplaces to set out the risks these products can pose and have been clear with these businesses about our expectations of the action they need to take to keep consumers safe. Online marketplaces have reported:

• conducting regular sweeps for non-compliant products
• sending additional information to relevant sellers warning them of risks to the public
• highlighting compliance requirements
• introducing display warnings at the point of sale

Some have banned certain products entirely. We continue to closely monitor action taken by these businesses to assess whether it is having a positive impact.

Regulatory activity at different points in the supply chain is key in tackling this issue. OPSS grant funds local authorities to undertake targeted and risk-based product checks at the border aimed at preventing unsafe or non-compliant products from entering the UK market. At the local level, local authority trading standards teams have been conducting inspection visits to local businesses involved in the supply, repair, modification and conversion of e-bikes, e-scooters and lithium-ion batteries to ensure they are aware of their responsibilities under the relevant regulations and are adequately managing the risks that may arise in the provision of these services.

Legislation and guidance

A significant focus of OPSS’ programme of work is on ensuring that existing guidance and legislation are applied effectively to protect people and places from the dangers associated with these products. This research outlines the significant risk the onset of thermal runaway in lithium-ion batteries poses in e-bike related fires. In December 2024, using powers under the General Product Safety Regulations 2005 (GPSR), the Secretary of State published statutory guidelines setting out the safety mechanisms that lithium-ion batteries for e-bikes must contain to address the risk of thermal runaway. These guidelines, which draw upon some of the findings in the research, must be taken into account by producers and distributors of lithium-ion batteries when assessing whether their battery meets legal safety requirements under the GPSR.

Read the statutory guidelines on lithium-ion battery safety for e-bikes.

OPSS has also commissioned the British Standards Institution (BSI) to develop a new Publicly Available Specification (PAS) (fast track standard) to cover the safety of lithium-ion batteries.

Consumer safety information

Understanding the real-world use of these products and impacts of fires involving e-bikes and e-scooters has been fundamental in informing how OPSS develops consumer messaging to support the safe purchase and use of these products.

OPSS conducts six-monthly consumer surveys and since December 2023 has included questions that provide insight into ownership and consumer behaviours in relation to e-bikes and e-scooters. This has been used to focus and target public safety information more effectively.

In October 2024, Minister for Employment Rights, Competition and Markets, Justin Madders MP, launched the Government’s Buy Safe Be Safe consumer information campaign, to raise awareness of the risks relating to e-bikes, e-scooters and their component parts and encouraging safe buying and charging practices. This campaign focuses on three key areas, encouraging consumers to:

• only buy safe products from reputable sellers
• only replace items with products recommended by the manufacturer
• seek professional help when converting or repairing e-bikes and e-scooters

This built upon previous OPSS activity aimed at raising consumer awareness. In March 2023, OPSS created consumer posters and social media resources for e-bike and e-scooter safety, updated in September 2023. This was closely followed by an important safety message, in December 2023, providing guidance for the public on clear, accessible steps that people should take when purchasing and using e-bikes and e-scooters.

Read the important safety message on e-bikes and e-scooters.

Through cross-Government collaboration, OPSS also contributed to the development of Government guidance, published through the Fire England brand, to provide advice to consumers on safe purchase and use of these products.

To maximise the reach of OPSS messaging and campaigns, including Buy Safe, Be Safe, we have developed relationships across Government and with a range of stakeholders, including consumer organisations, Fire and Rescue Services and industry. We have been working with key stakeholder groups to encourage messages to be disseminated widely. This includes writing to and meeting with delivery companies such as Deliveroo and Uber Eats whose platforms are often used by e-bike riders, to look at ways to ensure safety messages reach riders and couriers. OPSS is also working with local authority housing teams, sharing information, posters and assets to enable the housing officers to provide tenants who may own these products with easily accessible safety information.

The campaign has been shared with and disseminated through our stakeholder networks including local authorities, delivery companies, the Child Accident Prevention Trust, the Institute of Health Promotion and Education, the Chartered Trading Standards Institute, Citizens Advice and the National Fire Chiefs Council. It has been supported by other Government departments and work to build on the Buy Safe, Be Safe branding further is underway.

Next steps

Tackling the risks related to fires involving e-bikes and e-scooters remains a priority.

This research provides important insights into the construction and operation of the batteries and associated components used in these products, the way they are used, how they can fail, and the subsequent risks they might then pose. As the UK’s national product regulator, OPSS is continually assessing the most effective regulatory interventions to implement to protect consumers and target and remove dangerous products. We are carefully considering the findings in the research and will use these to inform our programme of activity. OPSS’ programme will prioritise:

• development of a PAS to cover the safety of lithium-ion batteries in collaboration with the BSI and other stakeholders, drawing on the findings in the WMG research
• improving the regulatory framework through the Product Regulation and Metrology Bill, which is currently on its journey through Parliament, and will allow us to ensure the UK’s product safety framework can keep up with technological development, including on e-bikes and lithium-ion batteries, if regulatory change is needed
• working closely with BSI to consider suggestions relating to standards identified from the research as part of upcoming reviews by technical committees
• building links with experts from academia, research institutes and industry to continue to expand the knowledge base on lithium-ion batteries and e-bike safety
• collaboration across government to align policy and promote safe consumer behaviours when buying and using e-bikes

OPSS is committed to working across government, with industry and with other stakeholder groups to review the detailed findings and suggestions made within the research and will call on those best placed to take action.