Government warning over rogue e-bike and e-scooter batteries follows deadly fire in Cambridge

The government has urged consumers to avoid buying e-bikes and e-scooters, or replacement batteries for them, from rogue online sellers because of the risk of deadly fires.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has warned that faulty parts have resulted in hundreds of fires, some of which have resulted in deaths.

The warning follows a call in June from grieving father Scott Peden, 30, from Cambridge, for urgent e-bike safety measures one year after losing his partner and two children in a fire.

Gemma Germeney, 31, and their children Lilly, 8, and Oliver, 4, died during a fire at a maisonette on Sackville Close, King’s Hedges, caused by an e-bike battery bought online.

The family’s two dogs also died in the blaze on 30 June, 2023, which left Scott in a coma for a month and with prolonged injuries.

“If my story doesn’t show the desperate need for a change in regulation, then I don’t know what will. I’m urging all the political parties to come together to tackle the issue of e-bike fires so that no one has to go through what I did. My life has been ruined but I can help to save someone else’s,” said Scott.

Fires involving lithium batteries used for e-bikes and e-scooters can spread rapidly and produce a toxic vapour.

Products sold which do not meet UK safety standards have been found to be more at risk of exploding and catching fire, particularly when being charged.

London Fire Brigade attended 143 e-bike fires and 36 e-scooter blazes last year, causing three deaths and leaving around 60 people injured.

The DBT said many fires are caused by parts being fitted to e-bikes or e-scooters which are incompatible, as well as by defective components.

It has launched a campaign calling on the public to buy only safe products from reputable sellers, only replace parts with products recommended by the manufacturer, and seek professional help when converting or repairing e-bikes or e-scooters.

Product safety minister Justin Madders said e-bikes can be “a great way to travel” but warned: “We’ve all seen the tragic stories of unsafe e-bikes and e-scooters causing dangerous fires and taking lives”.

He added: “We’re urging everyone to check what you’re buying, check where you’re buying it from and ensure it’s safe to use.”

Local transport minister Simon Lightwood said rogue sellers “risk bringing defective and dangerous batteries into people’s homes” and “undermine confidence in active travel as a whole”.

Lesley Rudd, chief executive of charity Electrical Safety First, said e-bikes and e-scooters purchased from reputable sources and used correctly are “generally safe”, but poor-quality products, improper charging or misuse can cause “ferocious fires”.

She added: “It’s equally as important to ensure you use a charger that is designed to be compatible with your battery to avoid the risk of overcharging which may destabilise the battery and lead to a fire.”

The Government’s campaign comes amid wider efforts to tackle the selling of dangerous goods through online marketplaces.

The Product Regulation and Metrology Bill was unveiled last month, which aims to tighten product regulations.

Meanwhile, online marketplace eBay is to restrict the sale of e-bikes and e-bike batteries on its UK platform from 31 October, it has announced.

The site said only “eligible business sellers” will be allowed to list them after this date.

An eBay spokeswoman said: “This policy change is in addition to the CE audits of listings offering e-bike batteries that we started last year, where we check that the products sellers are offering have valid CE documentation.”

Insurer Aviva said it had seen a seven per cent increase in customer claims over the past year for fires started by lithium-ion batteries, commonly found in rechargeable devices like mobile phones, tablets, power tools, e-bikes and e-scooters.

The data, which looks at fire claims across 2022 and 2023, includes extensive fire damage to a house after an e-bike with a second-hand battery was left charging unattended in a bedroom.

Additional research commissioned by the insurer suggests that one in nine Britons have suffered a fire (11 per cent) or explosion (11 per cent) in their home due to a lithium-ion battery or device.

Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service was called to a flat fire in East Road, Cambridge, on December 22 last year that showed “the consequences of using damaged battery packs”.

It warned: “The resident had a lucky escape and was unharmed but it could have been very different. The e-bike was bought from an online marketplace.”

The service also warned people not to charge batteries overnight.

“Always charge batteries when awake and alert,” said a spokesperson.

Eddie Kehoe, co-founder of The Electric Bike Shop on Newmarket Road, Cambridge, has offered free inspections of batteries and chargers on electric bikes and e-scooters after seeing “so many unsafe batteries and chargers coming through our workshop”.