E-Scooter Safety in Perth: Public Safety, Injury Prevention and Legal Responsibility

What the Perth figures showed

An SBS Arabic report published on 20 August 2026 described research from Royal Perth Hospital concerning e-scooter injury presentations before the City of Perth suspended rental services. The report stated that 105 people presented to the emergency department with e-scooter-related injuries during the preceding 12 weeks and that eight injuries were classified as severe. Farris Faris joined SBS Arabic to discuss public safety and legal responsibility.

A reduction after a policy change is important evidence, but it should be interpreted carefully. Timing alone does not prove that every change resulted from the ban, and rental devices are not the same as privately owned devices. Good policy asks what changed, who was affected and whether benefits and risks shifted elsewhere.

WA rules establish a minimum standard

The WA Road Safety Commission states that eRideables are limited to 10 kilometres per hour on footpaths and pedestrian crossings and up to 25 kilometres per hour on bicycle paths, shared paths and permitted local roads where safe. Riders must wear an approved helmet, may not carry a passenger and must meet the applicable age requirement.

Compliance is the starting point, not the complete safety system. A rider must respond to pedestrians, surface conditions, visibility and congestion. Operators and owners should maintain devices. Road managers need infrastructure that does not force incompatible users into conflict, and enforcement should target conduct that creates the greatest risk.

Responsibility can involve more than the rider

After a collision, legal responsibility depends on the facts: how the device was ridden, the condition of the device and path, the conduct of other road users and the duties that applied. A breach of a road rule may be relevant, but it does not answer every question about causation, loss or liability.

For that reason, people involved in a serious incident should preserve available evidence, seek medical attention and obtain advice about the applicable reporting, insurance and limitation issues. This commentary cannot determine responsibility for an individual event.

A balanced policy needs measurable outcomes

E-scooters can provide a useful first-and-last-kilometre transport option. They can also create serious risk when speed, alcohol, poor infrastructure, device defects or pedestrian conflict are not controlled. Treating the debate as a choice between prohibition and unrestricted access misses the range of available safeguards.

Cities should publish the evidence used to approve, limit or suspend schemes and state how success will be measured. Injury severity, pedestrian experience, compliance, accessibility, transport substitution and enforcement cost all matter. Transparent review makes it possible to adjust the rules without waiting for another tragedy.