With massive growth in the electric bike market in the last year or two it seems clear that this transport method is something that we are going to be seeing a lot more of in the future.
Electric bikes laws uk.
Yet the fact that these bikes are relatively new means that a lot of people aren t completely clear on the laws of using them yet.
James fitzgerald founder of electric bike retailer just ebike says that according to eu and uk law there is a 10 per cent margin on the maximum speed allowed for the motors to assist the.
Legal position is further complicated because twist and go e bikes bought before the introduction of the new laws and limited to a 250 watt motor remain effectively legal and.
Licensing tax and insurance you can ride an electric bike if you re 14 or over as long as it meets certain requirements.
Electric assistance can only be provided to a maximum of 25 km h 15 5 mph.
Electric scooters are freely available to buy in the uk online and in stores and they cost anywhere from just over 100 to more than 1000.
The laws surrounding where and who can ride which class of e bikes also varies state to state but the tl dr version is class 1 and 2 are permitted anywhere bikes are allowed and class 3 are okay.
The truth is that these laws vary widely from one state to another as.
So eapcs electric bikes or e bikes in common parlance must now meet the following criteria in order to have the same legal standing as regular non assisted bicycles and to be allowed on roads bike paths and other places where bicycles are allowed under uk law.
Electric bikes are treated much the.
But for now it s pretty clear in defining what can and what cannot be called an electric bike.
The law covering e bikes which are battery.
Uk electric bike laws as of december 2018 in april 2015 the uk electrically assisted pedal cycles eapc legislation was brought into line with the eu law en15194 which means that it could possibly change after brexit.
Sixteen years is the minimum age to ride a moped in the uk but this was reduced to 14 years for electric bikes taking into account their lower levels of power.
Electric motorbikes like conventionally powered motorbikes and mopeds are categorised by power and speed and different laws apply for different kinds of bikes.
There have already been some small electric scooter trials in the uk including a long running scheme operating in london s olympic park but now the.