As Wollongong prepares for a trial of e-scooters on its streets, an Illawarra lawyer whose firm has represented dozens of clients injured by the devices has said that no jurisdiction has yet to get it right when it comes to regulating the technology.
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Privately owned e-scooters are not allowed on NSW roads or related areas.
In the coming months Wollongong and other NSW council areas will conduct a 12 month trial introducing shared e-scooters as a way to get around.
Senior Associate at Shine Lawyers Natalee Davies said when e-scooters were introduced in other states there was a dramatic jump in injuries among riders and pedestrians, some of them fatal.
"We analysed the emergency data from Queensland after they introduced a shared scheme and what this found was a spike as a result of these e-scooters, in injuries that were predominantly upper limb injuries, often bilateral upper limb injuries, and also head injuries," she said.
A review of injuries caused by e-scooters in Queensland that led to patients ending up in the emergency department found a quarter involved alcohol and 10 per cent were not wearing a helmet.
There were approximately 1.5 presentations to the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital every day between January 1 and March 31, 2021.
The authors recommended auto-locking or slowing the speed of e-scooters in nightlife districts.
Under the proposal from Wollongong City Council, e-scooters can be ridden on roads at speeds of up to 20km/h and on bike lanes and shared paths at 10km/h.
The provider will have to demonstrate how to keep riders and pedestrians safe, including not using mobile phones and managing alcohol levels in riders.
A council spokesperson said lessons from other jurisdictions had been learnt.
"Council has spoken to and obtained insights from numerous councils and government bodies across Australia as part of our preparations for an e-scooter trial," the spokesperson said.
"Using past experiences from e-scooter schemes in other jurisdictions, has assisted council in outlining key elements and risks a Provider must manage of as part of their interest submission to council."
While a final agreement is yet to be reached, in the tender documents, the shared e-scooter provider assumes the risk of operating the scheme and must provide insurance to protect the public, riders and council.
Private e-scooters currently operate in a legal grey area, as they are an unregistrable vehicle.
This means that when someone is injured by a private e-scooter, whether a rider or someone else, there is little compensation available.
Ms Davies said the proposed scheme would get around this issue, somewhat.
"It introduces a private company that ought to have insurance and can be held to account if there's negligence," she said. "What it doesn't do is provide compensation for people in circumstances of accident."
The council spokesperson reiterated that private e-scooters would not be allowed on public roads and footpaths.
"Private e-scooters will continue to be prohibited from these areas and compliance will continue to be the responsibility of NSW Police."
Ms Davies said in instances where she has acted for people injured by e-scooters, the compensation available has not been able to cover the cost of the medical treatment required.
As final details are worked out between the provider and Council, Ms Davies, who said she supported the managed introduction of e-scooters, said there was an opportunity for Wollongong to get the balance right.
"Unfortunately no one's got it right yet, we could be the first, it could be Wollongong."
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