Guidance

E-cycle and e-scooter batteries: managing fire risk for public transport operators

Published 1 February 2024

Applies to England, Scotland and Wales

With their ability to enable more people to cycle, or to cycle further, e-cycles are an important element of the government’s ambition for active travel to make a significant contribution to the decarbonisation of the transport sector. Multimodal journeys, combining e-cycling with public transport journeys, are an important part of this ambition. Future regulations may, in time, also enable privately owned e-scooters to be used legally on public roads and play a role in future urban transport.

E-scooters, as an example of micromobility more generally, have had a global impact in recent years on personal mobility. Evidence from the e-scooter trials evaluation indicates that e-scooters can provide access to new transport options, with people from ethnic minority groups and individuals on low incomes more likely to use rental e-scooters regularly.

Where mode shift from car to e-scooter is achieved, it is expected that users could gain physical health benefits. The evaluation found that cars (privately owned or taxis) were the second most common mode of transport replaced by rental e-scooters, after walking. Qualitative findings also showed that some users experienced mental health benefits, by gaining a sense of independence and freedom from using an e-scooter.

Members of the public, including those who ride and do not ride an e-scooter have reported the following perceived benefits:

• speed of travel (particularly when compared with walking)
• convenience
• reduced environmental impact compared to other modes (such as cars)

So while safety remains the priority, it is also important that responses to fire risks are appropriately targeted, effective and proportionate, so that the potential of these forms of transport is not unnecessarily limited.

This guidance aims to provide public transport operators with tools, resources and options around risk management while safeguarding the utility of these modes of transport for users. It is not a legal compliance document and does not replace existing regulations or the need to comply with them. It is not intended to be exhaustive and is provided on an informative basis only.

Land and sea modes of public transport are considered in this document, but public transport by air is not covered.

This guidance focuses on risk and possible mitigation of lithium battery fires while e-cycles or e-scooters are being carried by public transport vehicles.

For additional guidance on managing these risks in premises and buildings, read E-cycle and e-scooter lithium batteries: managing fire risk for premises.

Recommended resources

Recommended resources include:

Guidance from the Home Office

Fire safety risk assessment: transport premises and facilities – this guidance is about completing a fire safety risk assessment for people responsible for transport premises and facilities.

Guidance from the rail, bus and ferry sectors

Currently, to our knowledge, and with the exception of guidance for ferry operators, no guidance is publicly available at a national level specifically dealing with the fire risk arising from the carriage on public transport of e-cycles or e-scooters.

Several major public transport operators have already conducted their own assessments of these risks and implemented policies accordingly, and these policies can generally be viewed on their public websites.   

Guidance from fire and rescue services

Transport operators should consult their local fire and rescue service for the latest advice specific to lithium fires and, if available, any guidance specific to personal mobility devices such as e-cycles and e-scooters.

To date, only limited specific guidance has been published and that relates to premises rather than to carriage on vehicles. This may nonetheless be relevant to the buildings and wider estates managed by public transport operators.

For example, in September 2023 London Fire Brigade published Fire Safety Guidance Note GN103: charging and storage for electric powered personal vehicles. This provides detailed guidance for office premises up to 18 metres in height and sets out a suggested approach for both office and residential buildings greater than 18 metres in height.

Guidance from the insurance industry

Operators should consult their insurance provider to check specific requirements. The insurance industry also publishes fire risk management guidance, although, at the time of publication, no document specific to e-scooter or e-cycle fire risk is available.

Guidance on e-cycles and e-scooters

The following guidance is from the Department for Transport (DfT):

• Gear Change: policy paper outlining the role of cycles and e-cycles in England’s future transport policy
• Electrically assisted pedal cycles (EAPCs) in Great Britain: information sheet
• Guidance on powered transporters, which includes privately owned e-scooters
• E-scooter trials: guidance for local authorities and rental operators
• E-scooter trials: guidance for users

Guidance from other countries

Fire risk from lithium batteries in personal mobility devices is an international issue and countries around the world are developing resources as a response.

UK authorities and fire and rescue services will continue to work with international counterparts to reflect international best practice in UK guidance.

Risk assessment

A fire risk assessment and subsequent fire mitigation measures is a legal duty under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005. The potential introduction of a new fire hazard would require a review of the fire risk assessment.

Fire risk assessments should be carried out by a competent person or by a professional fire risk assessor with relevant technical expertise. It will involve a holistic assessment of the premises for fire risk, fire safety systems and control measures, and potential consequences should a fire occur.

Public transport operators can support this work initially by monitoring and/or surveying transport users to establish the current and likely future numbers and types of e-cycles and/or e-scooters that may wish to use public transport networks.  

Special attention should be paid to identifying any particular requirements or behaviours that may need to be accommodated (for example, the use of non-standard e-cycles by disabled passengers).

Incidence risk factors

The limited data currently available suggests that lithium battery fires involving e-scooters and e-cycles are increasing year on year. Sadly, these incidents have involved a number of fatalities and serious injuries.

Reported figures collated from 38 fire and rescue services suggest that total incidents in recent years were at least:

• 2020: 77
• 2021: 159
• 2022: 227
• 2023: 338 (forecast)

Some detail on the causes of attended fires is provided by government statistics, but this analysis does not extend to the level of detail which would enable lithium battery fires from e-scooters and/or e-cycles to be identified.

Generally, these figures relate to fires in residential premises. Monitoring of media reports suggests that only a single confirmed incident (in 2021, an e-scooter incident on the London Underground) has been reported of an e-cycle or e-scooter fire in a public transport vehicle.

The destructive nature of lithium battery fires often means that precise details of the vehicle and battery involved are hard to establish after a fire and this makes identifying particular risk factors difficult.

However, preliminary information from fire services suggests:

• risk is highest while batteries are charging
• e-cycles from established brands purchased from reputable retailers as a complete system, and used in accordance with instructions, are understood to present a low fire risk based on knowledge to date
• the London Fire Brigade has identified ‘gig economy’ delivery riders as a particularly high-risk user group, due to the widespread use of owner-modified e-cycles
• visibly damaged, bulging, smelly or leaking battery packs pose an extremely high fire risk and should not be permitted in premises or vehicles

Mitigation of risk

Mitigation of risk from e-scooter and e-cycle battery fires can take place in several stages:

• educating users about the risks and to encourage responsible purchase and use
• provision of specific physical facilities in the public transport vehicle, where practical
• policies and rules to address remaining risks

Educating users

Public transport operators can help mitigate risks by proactively promoting to passengers the government’s guidance for users of e-cycles and e-scooters.

This guidance reflects calls from fire services for e-cycle and e-scooter users to purchase responsibly from reputable retailers.

Local fire and rescue services may also have developed guidance for users that is specific to local conditions, and this should also be promoted to users. For example, London Fire Brigade has comprehensive guidance as part of their #ChargeSafe campaign. You can also read guidance from Fire England.

Provide physical facilities

Where practical, but not essential, provide safe facilities so that users can continue to use their chosen vehicles and fully benefit from public transport provision.

Approaches may include to:

1. Provide storage locations for e-cycles and e-scooters that are either outdoors or fire-separated from passengers, crew or fire-sensitive equipment. For example:

• on ferries, transport them on deck
• on buses/coaches, transport them on external racks or trailers
• on trains, transport them in luggage carriages

2. Provide separate safe and secure e-cycle battery storage, so that batteries can be detached from the e-cycle and stowed securely. The rest of the e-cycle (without battery) can then be transported in the same way as any other non-electric cycle. This approach has the advantage that the battery storage container can be relatively compact, but the disadvantage is that it is more operationally complex and, hence, likely to be practical only for longer journeys. Containers should be designed for lithium battery transport and ideally vented externally. This approach will not apply to most e-scooters (and some e-cycles), which have battery packs that users cannot quickly remove.

In general, it is not necessary to offer provision for the charging of e-cycles or e-scooters while these are carried on public transport.

Other mitigations

Other mitigations could include:

• making clear that damaged lithium batteries are a particular fire risk and should not be brought onto the public transport vehicle. This could be done via conditions of carriage and/or other information for passengers. Further training for transport staff could also be considered
• users should be instructed that the e-cycle or e-scooter’s electrical system must be switched off
• users should be instructed that no battery charging should take place on board the public transport vehicle, and this should be monitored and enforced by staff
• unless a specific battery storage facility is provided, users should be instructed that the battery pack should be left in place throughout the journey. When left in place it is somewhat protected mechanically, and contacts will not be exposed. Ensuring the battery is left in place also mitigates the risk that users may take the battery pack with them and opportunistically charge using electrical outlets in the public transport vehicle

Review regularly

Risk assessments and the effectiveness of policies should be reviewed regularly by operators.

The Office for Product Safety and Standards is currently working closely with the fire service to review all evidence of fires involving lithium batteries in e-cycles and e-scooters to ensure the product safety issues are properly assessed and action is taken to protect users from harm.

Check regularly for updated guidance from government, fire and rescue services, regulatory authorities and other sector-relevant organisations.