Pursuing Compensation for E-Bike and Electric Scooter Injuries

Electric bicycles, electric scooters, and battery-powered motorcycles are rapidly growing in popularity. Although they may appear less dangerous than traditional motorcycles, they can travel at high speeds, weigh hundreds of pounds, and operate almost silently. When riders fail to use reasonable care, these vehicles can cause devastating injuries to pedestrians.

Across the country, pedestrians have been hit, severely injured, and killed by riders on electric devices. If you or someone in your family has been hurt this way, call Satterley & Kelley, PLLC at (855) 385-9532 to learn more about your rights to compensation.

How Often Do E-Bikes and Scooters Injure Pedestrians?

That’s unknown, but when people and these devices share the same space, accidents will happen.

These devices are becoming an increasingly popular means of transportation. Because they’re new, riders may have little experience safely driving them. An estimated 1.5 million electrically powered bicycles were sold in the US in 2025. If they comply with the law, they may go up to 28 mph. Illegally modified e-bikes and electrically powered motorcycles may travel much faster.

Examples of pedestrians injured or killed by two-wheeled electrically powered devices include the following:

• In April 2025, a 14-year-old student was illegally riding a powerful electric motorcycle near a high school in Lake Forest, California, when he struck Ed Ashman, an 81-year-old Vietnam veteran and substitute teacher who was walking home at the time. Ashman died of his injuries a week later. Local police warned the rider’s mother that he shouldn’t be using it, and she’s been criminally charged with manslaughter
• Luis Cruz was getting out of his parked car in Brooklyn, New York, last year when a food delivery worker on an e-bike ran a stop sign and struck him. Cruz suffered a serious head injury and died at the hospital
• A person was walking near Boston’s Copley Square when an electric bicycle hit them and caused life-threatening injuries, reports WBTS. A bicyclist interviewed for the story stated this type of accident was more likely to happen because e-bikes travel much faster than traditional bikes
• A 14-year-old boy riding an illegal electric motorcycle struck Janet Stotko from behind while she was out for an evening walk in Minnesota in 2024, reports the Bicycle Alliance of Minnesota. He was traveling an estimated 25 miles per hour at the time. Stotko suffered a brain injury, broken bones in her face and skull, and permanent hearing loss. She spent three weeks in the hospital, with two of those days on a ventilator. The boy received a ticket

The situation boils down to basic physics. A pedestrian struck by an object (an e-bike that may weigh 70 pounds, plus the rider’s weight) traveling at 25 miles per hour will be subjected to significant force, easily knocking them off their feet and onto a road, sidewalk, or other object. It’s roughly equivalent to, if not worse than, walking down the street and being hit by an NFL linebacker running at full speed.

What Is Negligence Under Kentucky Law?

Nearly all personal injury cases are based on the legal theory of negligence. It holds that under some circumstances, because there’s a relationship between parties, there’s an obligation by one party to act reasonably under the circumstances to avoid injuring the other party.

 If the duty arising out of that relationship is breached, and that breach is the legal and factual cause of an accident resulting in injuries, the person responsible may be obligated to compensate the victim for the harm they inflicted.

Under Kentucky law, if the accident victim also partially caused the accident, they can still receive compensation. But it will be reduced by their share of the blame for the accident and their injuries.

How Can an Electric Bike or Scooter Rider Be Negligent? 

There are many ways a rider can act, or fail to act, negligently and cause a collision with a pedestrian, including the following:  

• Riding too fast for the conditions or over the applicable speed limit
• Riding on sidewalks, where pedestrians have the right of way
• Running stop signs or red lights
• Failing to yield the right of way
• Riding while distracted
• Riding under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
• Doing dangerous tricks or stunts in the presence of others
• Riding without proper lights or safety equipment, especially at night
• Illegally riding an electric motorcycle while too young to do so, and or without a proper license, insurance, or registration

A critical part of our job is investigating the accident and determining how and why it happened. Without this evidence, there’s no basis for an insurance claim or lawsuit.

Can Parents Be Held Responsible if the Rider Is a Minor?

As the examples above illustrate, many serious accidents involve minors operating heavy, high-powered electric bicycles, electric scooters, or electric motorcycles. In some cases, the rider may be too young to legally operate the vehicle or may be using it in violation of state or local law.

When a minor causes a serious accident, an important question becomes who is legally responsible for the victim’s injuries. Depending on the circumstances, liability may extend beyond the minor and include a parent or guardian, the owner of the vehicle, or another responsible party. Identifying all potentially responsible parties and available insurance coverage is often critical to obtaining full compensation for the victim’s injuries.

Parents may be held responsible under negligence law if their negligence, combined with their child’s acts, causes your injuries. This potential liability may be covered under their homeowner’s or renter’s insurance. Their assets may also be used to satisfy a successful verdict against them.

 Parents may be negligent in a variety of ways, depending on the circumstances. Examples include:

• Allowing a child to operate an e-bike or electric motorcycle when they know, or reasonably should know, that the child operates the vehicle in a dangerous or reckless manner.
• Purchasing, providing, or permitting a child to use an e-bike or electric motorcycle that the child is not legally permitted to operate under applicable law.
• Failing to exercise reasonable supervision or control over a child when the circumstances require it to protect others from an unreasonable risk of harm.

Every accident is different. Whether a parent may be legally responsible depends on the specific facts of the case, including what the parent knew or reasonably should have known, the child’s age and experience, the type of vehicle involved, and the steps the parent took—or failed to take—to prevent the accident.

Speak To a Satterley & Kelley, PLLC Personal Injury Attorney Today

If someone negligently operating an e-bike or electric motorcycle caused injuries to you or a loved one, Satterley & Kelley PLLC lawyers are here to protect your interests and legal rights to compensation. Don’t deal with an insurance company and severe injuries by yourself.

Schedule a free initial consultation to discuss your case. Call our Louisville office at 502-589-5600 (toll-free at 855-385-9532) or complete our contact form.