E-bike and e-scooter warning issued amid ‘growing’ black market

E-bike and e-scooter fires reached record levels in the UK last year, prompting urgent warnings to motorists about products purchased from online marketplaces.

Fire service figures obtained by the Press Association show 432 e-bike fires will be recorded in 2025. This is up 38 per cent from the 313 fires the previous year and is five times more than the 84 fires in 2021.

There were 147 e-scooter fires last year; This number is a 20 percent increase from 123 in 2024. In 2021, this figure was 88.

These dangerous fires are often caused by faulty batteries, conversion kits or chargers.

Products purchased from online marketplaces face a higher risk of failure than those purchased from established retailers, largely due to less stringent regulations.

Nick Bailey of BatteryIQ, which monitors e-bike battery safety, highlighted this concern, noting that the e-bikes and e-scooters involved are “cut-price products sold on online marketplaces with invariably lax quality control.”

He added: “There is also a growing black market in DIY and counterfeit batteries made using battery cells recovered from used disposable e-cigarettes, particularly for delivery drivers.

“No matter what the manufacturer’s label says, I would not keep a battery in my home without constant monitoring.”

The Press Association has sent Freedom of Information requests to all 49 fire brigades in the UK, asking for the number of e-bike and e-scooter fires they have recorded each year between 2021 and 2025.

Thirty-seven brigades provided comparable data.

London Fire Brigade (LFB) recorded by far the highest number of e-bike and e-scooter fires last year, with 171 and 35 fires respectively.

The highest number of e-bike fires outside the capital were in Nottinghamshire (30), followed by Greater Manchester (13).

Avon Fire and Rescue Service had the second highest amount (10).

Greater Manchester had the most e-scooter fires outside London (13), ahead of Avon Fire and Rescue Service (10).

Fires involving lithium batteries used in e-bikes and e-scooters can spread quickly and produce toxic fumes.

Eden Abera Siem, 30, died in hospital after being rescued by firefighters after a fire broke out at her home in Lordship Lane, Wood Green, north London, on June 21 last year.

This was the fourth fatal e-bike fire recorded in the capital.

Lesley Rudd, chief executive of charity Electrical Safety First, said fires caused by substandard e-bike and e-scooter batteries were “becoming a runaway train that must be stopped quickly”.

He continued: “Poorly manufactured batteries and accessories, often sold on poorly regulated online marketplaces, are a major concern and a major route for dangerous devices into people’s homes.

“Without strong and actionable changes, lives are at serious risk and further loss of life is sadly inevitable.”

Last week the Government published three consultations setting out plans to improve product safety in the UK; these include online marketplaces, which are legally required to “prevent, identify and remove dangerous products sold through their platforms.”

LFB deputy commissioner Spencer Sutcliff said the brigade was “extremely concerned about the e-bike and e-scooter fires and the devastating impact they could have on lives and livelihoods”.

He added that firefighters “continue to be called out at an alarming rate” to incidents.

Privately owned e-scooters have been banned on Transport for London (TfL’s) network since December 2021 due to fire risks.

This has been extended to non-folding e-bikes for the majority of TfL services after an e-bike caught fire on a platform at Rayners Lane Tube station in March last year.

Although private e-scooters are banned from public use across the UK, they are used illegally in most urban areas.

Legal trials of rented e-scooters on roads have been ongoing in towns and cities across the UK since July 2020.

According to UK law, e-bike motors must be deactivated once a speed of 25.5 mph is reached.

But police are increasingly finding that many have been modified to reach much higher speeds.

Sue Davies, Which? Head of Consumer Rights Policy said: “Online marketplaces are increasingly saturated with unsafe products.

“E-bikes and e-scooters are just some of the items that can pose serious risks to consumers and also disrupt responsible, law-abiding businesses.

“The government has launched a much-needed consultation on updating the product safety framework, including duties on online marketplaces to prevent unsafe products being sold by third-party sellers.

“These duties must be strong and enforceable, with clear measures in place to protect consumers and reduce the risk of fire and other harm.”