E-scooters are illegal on the roads. Over the past year and a half – Lancashire Police working in partnership with local authorities across Lancashire have been spreading awareness about the legalities and dangers of riding E-bikes and scooters on the public roads. There has been widespread coverage in news across the nation. The message is clear – keep them off the streets.

In Lancashire, this message has been backed by direct enforcement. Under the banner of Operation Centurion, police have seized hundreds of illegal e-bikes and e-scooters across the county, targeting uninsured and unlicensed riders. In Preston alone, 24 vehicles were taken off the streets in a single day, while coordinated actions in Chorley and South Ribble saw 16 more seized using drones and specialist off-road teams. These operations are designed not just to disrupt dangerous riding, but to send a clear signal: illegal micromobility won’t be tolerated.

The county’s Police and Crime Commissioner Clive Grunshaw has reinforced this stance with a public campaign warning young riders – and their parents – that illegal use could result in long-term consequences, including driving licence bans. Messaging has focused on the risks to both riders and the public, with officers stressing that enforcement is about safety, not punishment. Alongside this, Lancashire Constabulary has deployed six new motorcycles to pursue off-road vehicles in hard-to-reach areas, expanding their reach into parks, alleyways, and estates where nuisance riding is most common.

Despite this clear messaging from Authorities – We’re still seeing use of these devices on the roads daily. Last night yet another incident in our town resulting in the serious injury of the rider with passenger claiming to have slid down the road for 10m without injury in a comment on a social media post about the incident last night.

Police Statement

Police and Paramedics were called to the junction of Bispham Road and Holyoake Ave just after 10pm. In a statement to Blackpool News this morning they told us the following information about the incident

“We were called at 10.12pm yesterday (05/11/2025) to Bispham Road, Blackpool, to a report of a collision.

The emergency services attended, and it was found that an electric bike had been involved in a single-vehicle collision and that two people had fallen from the bike.

An 18-year-old man was taken to hospital with serious head and arm injuries which thankfully are not thought to be life-threatening.

The other person on the bike was not injured.

Anyone who witnessed what happened or has information, please contact 101 – quoting log 1654.”

Blackpool News has since learned that what the police describe as an Electric Bike on their log has been described by the passenger as an E-scooter. This point of technicality comes down to the description of electrically powered vehicles under the Road Traffic Act 1988.

This technical distinction matters. Under the Road Traffic Act 1988, electrically powered vehicles are classified based on their design, method of propulsion, and intended use. A compliant e-bike – known legally as an Electrically Assisted Pedal Cycle (EAPC) – must have pedals, a motor that cuts out at 15.5 mph, and a maximum power output of 250 watts. These are treated like bicycles and do not require insurance or registration. In contrast, e-scooters, which lack pedals and rely solely on motor power, are classed as “powered transporters.” Unless part of a government-approved rental scheme (which Blackpool doesn’t participate in), they are illegal to use on public roads, pavements, or parks.

Mobility scooters fall under a separate category entirely. Class 2 and Class 3 invalid carriages are regulated under the Use of Invalid Carriages on Highways Regulations 1988. These are legal for road or pavement use depending on their speed and design, but must be used by individuals with mobility impairments.

Devices like One Wheels, hoverboards, balance boards, and electric skateboards are not recognised under any current UK vehicle classification. As such, they are also considered powered transporters and are illegal to use on public roads, pavements, parks or public playing fields, promenades or public car parks. Despite their popularity, these devices remain in a legal grey zone – often seized during enforcement operations and misunderstood by riders who assume they fall under the same rules as bicycles.

Previous notable cases involving E-bikes / scooters

On February 23, 2025, a teenager was riding an illegal, uninsured e-scooter with no lights, carrying a female passenger, when he ran a red light on Whitegate Drive, Blackpool, colliding with another vehicle. The female passenger sustained a significant and life-changing head injury, leaving her with physical and mental scarring and mobility issues, while the rider was not seriously hurt. The male rider was charged with Causing Serious Injury by Dangerous Driving, Driving with a specified controlled drug (cannabis) above the limit, Driving without a licence, and Using a motor vehicle without insurance, resulting in a 12-month Youth Offender Panel referral order and an 18-month driving ban on October 9, 2025.

A serious E-Bike crash was reported on August 23, 2025, on Hawes Side Lane, Blackpool, between Troughton Crescent and Ellesmere Road, where the biker was reported to have suffered ‘serious injuries’.

A reckless police pursuit involving an e-bike rider took place on Sunday, February 9, 2025, after a 17-year-old was spotted riding dangerously on Whitegate Drive, speeding through Stanley Park—narrowly avoiding pedestrians and cutting across football pitches filled with children—with the chase continuing to the Promenade. The National Police Air Service (NPAS) was deployed, and the pursuit ended with an authorised tactical stop on Central Drive; the teenager pleaded guilty to dangerous driving and failing to stop, leading to a 12-month driving ban, a Youth Offender Panel referral, and the confiscation of his e-bike.

In a major police operation on July 23, 2025, as part of Operation Centurion, officers in Blackpool seized a total of 56 illegal e-bikes, e-scooters, motorbikes, and illegally adapted cycles, with most seizures made under Section 165 for not having a licence or insurance. Police highlighted during this operation that they are seeing an increase in the use of these illegal bikes and scooters in criminal activity, such as drug dealing, and noted that an illegally adapted pedal bike made by a 15-year-old was capable of reaching speeds over 40 MPH.

An earlier crackdown around April 5, 2025, saw 41 illegal e-bikes, e-scooters, and other off-road vehicles seized in Blackpool alone by a major operation involving Roads Policing, Neighbourhood teams, Dogs, and the National Police Air Service, with authorities stressing that these vehicles are often used in a dangerous manner, are linked to other forms of criminality, and will be crushed.

An incident on Easter Sunday, March 31, 2024 involved a masked gang causing chaos riding illegally around Blackpool on an e-bike, leading to a police helicopter chase and an eventual arrest and seizure of one e-bike after riders were seen racing along tram tracks and Dickson Road.

Beyond Blackpool, it was generally reported in July 2025 that as part of Operation Centurion across Lancashire, over 979 e-bikes and quads had been removed from the county’s streets in the preceding months, with police continuing to use powers to arrest and curb anti-social behaviour often associated with these vehicles.