Thousands fined for not wearing helmets, evading police
More than 2000 fines have been issued since last month as part of a major crackdown on illegal e-scooter activity in Queensland.
Penalties were mostly given for helmet violations, but warnings were also given to drivers who evaded police or failed to stop.
So far this year, 14 people have died in incidents involving e-mobility devices on Queensland roads.
More than 4,500 police hours during the blitz resulted in 1,652 fines for motorists not using helmets, 207 for prohibited use of e-scooters on the road, 72 for transporting passengers illegally, 68 for exceeding the speed limit and 61 for failing to stop for police.
Around 100 e-scooters were also seized during the statewide crackdown.
“Too many motorists are deliberately ignoring the rules of the road, putting themselves and others at serious risk,” Police Minister Dan Purdie said on Sunday.
“I want to send a clear message to parents and owners of these devices, especially those who may have received them at Christmas. You must understand the law and know that our police are out in force targeting the illegal and unsafe use of e-bikes and e-scooters and will continue to do so.”
Parents were asked to supervise their children while using the devices.
“We often see these devices being used by children and interacting with traffic along with them,” said Inspector Gareth Bosley. “And when they don’t understand the rules of the road, they put themselves at serious risk.”
The crackdown comes after road safety advocates this month issued a warning to parents giving their children e-scooters for Christmas, following a rise in hospital admissions and a number of deaths caused by electric devices in south-east Queensland.
More than 1,600 e-scooter riders were hospitalized five times a day in the first 10 months of the year, according to research by the Jamieson Trauma Institute in partnership with RACQ.
Data collected between January 2018 and October 2025 showed there were more than 7200 visits to Queensland emergency departments following e-scooter accidents, with almost 30 per cent involving head injuries and around 24 per cent involving facial trauma.
The parliamentary inquiry into e-scooters and e-bikes is due to present its report by the end of March, with Prime Minister David Crisafulli promising to lead to change.
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