The Victorian Coroner has called for a ban on the importation and sale of high-powered, high-speed e-scooters.
His Honour Paul Lawrie found that scooter models were for sale with advertised top speeds of more than 110km/h, higher than the state's top speed limit.
He quoted advertisements for these models that included enticements such as ‘…at a speed faster than a lightning bolt on a caffeine high’, and peak power of 5,000 watts.
"In a collision or loss of control, the rider’s momentum is carried from their standing position with a real likelihood that they will be propelled head-first into whatever is before them,” he said.
"It is not only the rider that is exposed to the dangers associated with these high-powered devices, pedestrians and other road users are also exposed.
"The prevalence of use in bicycle lanes, and on shared footways and bicycle paths, serves to highlight these dangers."
The Coroner reported on the investigation of the death of Moustafa Abou-Eid, 28, who died from head injuries after he fell from a private e-scooter in Cornwell Road, Pascoe Vale, in September 2022.
Abou-Eid, a tow truck driver, had lost control after encountering a speed hump. He was not wearing a helmet.
The e-scooter he was riding was a Kaabo Mantis 10 Elite driven by two 1,000-watt electric motors, one for each of the front and rear wheels and powered by a 60V / 18.2Ah lithium-ion battery.
Witnesses reported that as Abou-Eid encountered the speed hump, the handlebars of the e-scooter locked to the left and he was thrown off to the right, hitting the road headfirst.
Witness reports and crash reconstruction indicated the scooter had reached speeds of 50–60km/h.
Police undertook a test ride of the scooter over the hump at 30km/h and reported that it felt unstable. The rider reported that the steering was sensitive and the trigger throttle aggressive.
The front wheel would ‘break traction’ on a dry concrete surface when under acceleration at the highest power setting.
The Coroner also heard engineering evidence from Dr Yuxing Zhao, a specialist crash investigator attached to Victoria Police, who said that e-scooters were designed to be stable and manoeuvrable at low speeds, but over 25km/h tended to lose control over bumps and could not be considered safe.
His Honour said it was apparent that high-powered e-scooters are being imported on the basis that they are not ‘road vehicles’.
"I accept that these difficult challenges exist, but they do not present a sufficient obstacle to explain the current state of affairs where the importation of these devices, no matter how powerful, is effectively unfettered," he said.
"The source of the problem does not appear to lie with individuals who are cleverly evading import restrictions. Rather, it is the importation by companies on a commercial scale to supply Australian retailers and online resellers in a burgeoning market.
"A purchaser in Victoria can easily select a high-power / high-speed model, either online or in store. There is no licencing requirement.
"There is no training or testing requirement. There is no registration requirement, and no way to readily identify a particular e-scooter on the road. Finally, and chillingly, there is no rider age restriction.
"Any notion that these high-speed / high-powered e-scooter models are being imported and sold in Australia principally for use by enthusiasts on private land, or for use off road, is fanciful."
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