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E-scooter-related injuries among children are on the rise, according to new data from B.C. Children’s Hospital, as the devices grow in popularity across the province.
The hospital says its emergency department saw 81 visits related to e-scooter use among children and youth from April 1, 2025 to March 31, 2026 — more than double the 37 visits recorded the year before.
Under provincial rules, e-scooter riders must be at least 16 years old, but B.C. Children’s says the highest proportion of emergency visits (54 per cent) were among children aged 13 to 15.
Dr. Shelina Babul, director of the B.C. Injury Research and Prevention Unit at the hospital, says many parents are simply unaware of the rules.
“I think there’s a lack of understanding, lack of education around who should be riding e-scooters,” she said.
“Speed is the biggest factor and not wearing a helmet. Just yesterday I saw someone on their e-scooter with their helmet in their backpack.”
New federal data reveals e-scooter injuries requiring hospitalization are surging among young people under the age of 17. In the last year, 81 young patients were admitted for e-scooter injuries. The year before there were just 37. Nearly all were male. Dr. Shelina Babul from the B.C. Children’s Hospital tells us what they’re seeing regarding hospital visits and e-scooter injuries.
B.C. Children’s says 35 per cent of the emergency visits involved fractures, while 26 per cent of the patients had bruises and abrasions and 17 per cent had concussions.
Riding restrictions and police enforcement
B.C. has been testing the use of electric kick scooters on public roads under a four-year pilot project that now includes 36 communities, including Vancouver, Burnaby, Victoria, Kelowna and Prince George.
The pilot allows e-scooters in participating communities but only under specific rules. Riders must be at least 16, wear a helmet and use an e-scooter that cannot travel faster than 25 km/h.
Riders can face a $109 fine, impoundment or other penalties for breaking those rules.
Last week, a 12-year-old in North Vancouver was taken to hospital with minor injuries after the child, who was on an e-scooter, collided with a car. Police say the gave the child’s guardian a ticket for allowing a person under 16 to operate an e-scooter.
“Police, first responders, and medical professionals have been raising the alarm on the dangers of e‑scooters and the serious injuries they could cause, and have conducted an extensive educational campaign targeting parents and students about the rules and regulations of e‑scooters,” North Vancouver RCMP Cpl. Mansoor Sahak said in a news release.
“While police continue to educate, enforcement actions have increased and we are holding parents accountable.”
The Vancouver Police Department previously told CBC News that e-scooters were “not currently an enforcement priority.”
In an emailed statement Monday, a spokesperson said they plan to review education opportunities and enforcement strategies around e-scooter use after FIFA World Cup events conclude.
Vancouver’s shared electric scooter service, operated by Lime, is celebrating one year and more than 400,000 rides across the city. And it’s hoping to expand e-mobility to more areas across the province. But as Tanushi Bhatnagar reports, advocates say a lack of infrastructure and enforcement is leading to a growing public safety concern.
But road safety advocates say not enough is being done.
“Obviously enforcement is not great,” said Margie Sanderson with the advocacy group Vision Zero Vancouver.
“As we see micromobility as a new alternative to driving growing in popularity, it just shows that we need more than ever infrastructure design that keeps our road users safe,” she said.
She said riders should not be forced to choose between mixing with vehicle traffic or riding on sidewalks alongside pedestrians.
Last month, Burnaby adopted bylaw changes banning e-scooters on many major roads unless riders are in a separated cycle lane or multi-use pathway. The city also banned e-scooters in local parks unless a park, or part of a park, has been specifically designated for them.
The Fraser-Cascade School District, which serves parts of the eastern Fraser Valley, also banned e-scooters on school property due to injuries and public safety concerns.
Maintaining injury record
Fraser Health says it’s also seeing signs of a sharp increase in e-scooter injuries but tracking the full scope of the problem remains difficult.
Dr. Emily Newhouse, a medical health officer with the health authority, says emergency department data does not capture every e-scooter injury clearly because those records are built first for patient care, not for producing statistics.
“There isn’t any formal coding for e-scooters in our emergency department health records,” she said.
Regardless, she says Fraser Health has seen a clear increase in e-scooter injuries over the last few years and most cases appear to involve someone falling off an e-scooter rather than collisions.
Newhouse is asking parents not to assume that just because an e-scooter is available for purchase, it is safe for a child to ride.
“We wouldn’t necessarily give our kids a gas motorcycle but we’re giving kids devices that are quite powerful,” she said.
