E-Bike & Scooter Accident Lawyer in Los Angeles

If a driver hit you while you rode an e-bike, a Lime or Bird scooter, or your own electric scooter, you are probably dealing with two problems at once. You are hurt, and the insurance company is already looking for a reason to blame you. This guide covers what California law says about e-bikes and scooters, where you can legally ride in Los Angeles, how adjusters shift fault onto riders, which policies can pay you, which LA streets are the most dangerous, and what to do in the first days. Moe Abdallah Law, P.C. takes cases only when you were physically hurt in a crash with a motor vehicle. Past results do not predict a similar outcome.

What cases Moe takes, and what he does not

Here is the scope in plain words. Moe Abdallah Law, P.C. represents people who were physically injured, or families of people killed, in crashes with motor vehicles. That means a car, truck, bus, motorcycle, or rideshare vehicle hit you while you were on an e-bike or an electric scooter. It includes hit-and-run drivers who left you in the street, and drivers with no insurance. The firm does not take every scooter or e-bike case. If you fell on your own because a scooter or battery was defective, that is a product case, and Moe does not handle it. If you were hurt in a crash with no motor vehicle involved, such as two scooters colliding or a scooter hitting a pedestrian, this firm is not the right fit. Property-damage-only claims are out too. Workplace injuries and premises cases are also outside what Moe handles. Why say this up front? Because you should not waste days calling the wrong lawyer. If a driver was part of your crash, call (323) 716-1992 any hour for a free review. If a driver was not, you are better off with a product liability firm. The consultation is free, Moe works on contingency, and he takes the calls himself. Se Habla Español.

E-bike classes under California law

California does not treat every electric bike the same. Vehicle Code section 312.5 defines an electric bicycle as a bicycle with fully operable pedals and an electric motor that does not exceed 750 watts. It then splits e-bikes into three classes. A class 1 e-bike gives motor help only while you pedal, and the help stops at 20 miles per hour. A class 2 e-bike can move on motor power alone, with a throttle, and its help also stops at 20 miles per hour. A class 3 e-bike gives help only while you pedal, stops helping at 28 miles per hour, and must have a speedometer. Class 1 and class 3 bikes may also have a walk mode that moves the bike on motor power alone, up to 3.7 miles per hour. The same section says a rider on an e-bike is subject to the same rules as a bicycle rider, found in Vehicle Code section 21200 and the sections after it. That matters for your claim. Cyclists get the same road rights as drivers, and e-bike riders generally share them. There is a catch. Section 312.5(d) says a vehicle is not an e-bike if it was modified to go faster than 20 miles per hour on motor power alone, to exceed 750 watts, or to lose its pedals. A heavily modified bike may be treated differently by police and insurers. Tell your lawyer exactly what you were riding and keep the bike as it is. The speedometer, battery, and motor can all become evidence about how fast you were going.

Helmet and age rules for e-bikes and scooters

Insurance adjusters love helmet questions, so know the rules before they ask. They differ by device. For class 3 e-bikes, Vehicle Code section 21213 says nobody under 16 may operate one. It also says every rider and passenger, of any age, must wear a properly fitted and fastened ASTM or CPSC compliant helmet on a street, bikeway, or public bike path or trail. For class 1 and class 2 e-bikes, ordinary bicycle law applies. Section 21212 says a person under 18 must wear a properly fitted and fastened helmet when riding a bicycle, a nonmotorized scooter, or a skateboard on a street, bikeway, or public path. Adults on those e-bike classes have no helmet requirement in that section. A violation is an infraction with a fine of up to $25. For motorized scooters, section 21235(c) bars anyone under 18 from riding one without a properly fitted and fastened bicycle helmet that meets the section 21212 standard. The LADOT page on shared scooters says riders of shared e-scooters must be 18 or older with a valid California driver's license, and that helmets are not required for those riders but are strongly recommended. So if you are an adult on a Lime or Bird scooter and had no helmet, you did not break a helmet law. An insurer may still argue it made your injury worse. That is a fault argument about damages, which the next sections cover. Wear a helmet anyway. A head injury is the hardest thing to repair.

Scooter rules and where you can ride in Los Angeles

California defines a motorized scooter in Vehicle Code section 407.5 as a two-wheeled device with handlebars, a floorboard to stand on or a seat with footrests, powered by an electric motor. Motorcycles, motor-driven cycles, and mopeds are not scooters. Section 21235 then lists what a scooter operator may not do. You may not ride without a brake that can skid a wheel on dry pavement. You may not ride on a highway with a speed limit over 25 miles per hour unless you are inside a Class II or Class IV bikeway, although a local authority may allow riding outside those bikeways on roads with a limit up to 35. The law sets a 15 miles per hour maximum speed for a motorized scooter on all highways. You may not ride without a valid driver's license or instruction permit, carry a passenger, carry anything that keeps a hand off the handlebars, or ride on a sidewalk except to enter or leave adjacent property. You may not attach yourself to another vehicle. LADOT's shared mobility page for Los Angeles repeats the main points for shared scooters: riders must be 18 or older with a California license, only one person may ride, the speed cap is 15 miles per hour, and you ride on surface streets and are encouraged to use bike lanes. LADOT says sidewalk riding is banned under state law and lists the fine as $197. LAPD traffic divisions handle that ticketing. For e-bikes, Vehicle Code section 21207.5 lets local authorities and agencies that run a trail ban e-bikes, or a class of e-bike, on equestrian, hiking, or recreational trails. Check signs before you ride a trail. Never assume a path allows your bike.

How insurers blame e-bike and scooter riders

The other driver's insurer will not say, we will pay less because you were on a scooter. It will say you share the blame. California follows pure comparative negligence under Li v. Yellow Cab Co. (1975) 13 Cal.3d 804. You can recover even when you were partly at fault, but your award drops by your percentage of fault. Insurers push that percentage up. Expect these arguments. You were riding on the sidewalk. You were over the speed cap. You had no helmet. You had no license. You were two people on one scooter. You swerved out of the bike lane. You were in the middle of the lane. You wore dark clothes and had no lights at night. You were looking at your phone, and the ride app shows it. Some of these answers are in the statutes. Vehicle Code section 21202 says a bike rider moving slower than traffic should stay near the right edge, but not when passing, preparing for a left turn, approaching a right turn, or avoiding hazards, and not in a lane too narrow for a bike and car to share safely. A bicycle rider has the same rights as a driver under section 21200. Section 21760, the Three Feet for Safety Act, requires a driver passing a bicycle to leave at least 3 feet, and section 22517 bars opening a car door into traffic, including a cyclist, unless it is reasonably safe. Proposition 51 also helps. If more than one party is at fault, each defendant pays non-economic damages such as pain and suffering only in proportion to its own fault. A rule you broke does not erase the driver's duty. The question is who caused the crash, and by how much.

Who pays when a car hits you: driver coverage, your UM/UIM, and hit-and-run

Start with the driver. The at-fault driver's liability insurance is the first source of money for your medical bills, lost income, and pain. California's minimum liability limits rose to $30,000 per person and $60,000 per accident for policies issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2025. Some drivers carry only that. Serious injuries can pass $30,000 fast. Your own policy may fill the gap. Insurance Code section 11580.2 requires uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage in California auto bodily injury policies unless the policyholder signed a written form to delete or reduce it. The statute defines an insured to include the named insured, a spouse, and relatives living in the household, occupants of a motor vehicle or otherwise. So if you own a car policy with UM/UIM, it can reach you even when you were on an e-bike or scooter and not in your car. Read your declarations page, and do not assume. Policies differ. If the driver fled, the unknown driver counts as uninsured only if three conditions are met. Your injury must come from physical contact between the vehicle and you or your vehicle. You, or someone for you, must report the crash within 24 hours to the city police, or to the sheriff or CHP in unincorporated areas. And you must file a sworn statement with your insurer within 30 days after that report. A near miss that makes you crash with no contact can defeat the claim, so tell the officer exactly what happened. Two more traps. Settling with the at-fault driver without your UM insurer's written consent can void UM coverage. And you generally must sue or start arbitration by certified mail within two years of the crash. Moe obtained a $100,000 policy-limit UM recovery for a woman rear-ended by a driver who fled with no police report, after other firms turned her down. Past results do not predict a similar outcome.

Los Angeles streets where riders get hurt

LADOT says its High Injury Network is 6 percent of city streets, more than 450 miles, yet it accounts for 70 percent of deaths and severe injuries for people walking. Riders share those streets. LADOT's 2024 High Injury Network layer lists Western Avenue, Figueroa Street, and Vermont Avenue among the longest stretches for pedestrians and bicyclists. Federal crash data points the same way. Our tally of NHTSA FARS files for 2019 to 2024 found about 38 fatal crashes on Western Avenue inside the City of Los Angeles, the most of any surface street, about 33 on Foothill Boulevard, about 30 on Figueroa Street, about 28 on Vermont Avenue, and about 25 on Normandie Avenue. LADOT also says 69 people were killed or severely injured on Adams Boulevard from 2009 to 2019, and that 149 people were killed or severely injured on Avalon Boulevard from 2009 to 2017, with 44 percent of them walking or riding a bike. The same FARS tally counted 1,914 traffic deaths in the City of Los Angeles from 2019 to 2024. Bicyclists were 82 of them. Motorcyclists were 263. At least one vehicle was coded hit-and-run in 436 of the 1,822 fatal crashes, about 24 percent, and 71 percent of fatal crashes happened after dark. We found no official LA count that separates e-bike and e-scooter riders, so be careful with anyone who quotes you one. What this means for you: night, wide fast arterials, and drivers turning across a bike lane are the danger pattern. If your crash happened on one of these corridors, say so in your first call. It can help show the driver knew riders and walkers use the street.

Evidence and first steps after an e-bike or scooter crash

Call 911 if you are hurt. Get checked at an emergency room even if you feel fine. Adrenaline hides concussions, fractures, and internal injuries. Los Angeles has major trauma centers, including Los Angeles General Medical Center, Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, all Level I, and California Hospital Medical Center, Level II. Tell the doctor everything that hurts and ask that it go in the chart. Ask police to write a report. On surface streets inside the city, LAPD Traffic Divisions investigate. LAPD says to wait at least 45 days before requesting the collision report online, and it does not release reports with an arrest, a death, or a juvenile online. The mail-in form requires a $19.00 check or money order to the LAPD. On freeways, the CHP writes the report. If the driver fled, report within 24 hours. That deadline is a legal condition for your UM claim. Protect proof. Photograph the driver, the plate, the vehicle damage, the road, the lane markings, and your injuries. Get names and numbers of witnesses before they leave. Look for cameras on nearby businesses and ask them to save footage, since many systems overwrite it quickly. Keep your helmet, clothes, and the device exactly as they are. Do not repair a bike or scooter, or charge and reset it, until your lawyer decides what to save. A shared scooter's app trip record may show the time and route of your ride, so screenshot it now and do not delete the app. Do not give the other driver's insurer a recorded statement and do not accept a quick check. Send them to your lawyer.

Deadlines that apply to your claim

Most injury lawsuits against a private driver must be filed within two years of the crash under Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1. Miss it and the court will almost always dismiss. If the person hurt is a minor, the two-year clock generally does not run until age 18 under section 352, but that tolling does not extend government deadlines. Crashes involving a city, county, or state vehicle, or a dangerous road condition such as a defective bike lane, move much faster. You generally must present a written government claim within six months of the crash under Government Code section 911.2. After a written rejection you have six months to sue under section 945.6. For the City of Los Angeles, only the Office of the City Clerk, 200 North Spring Street, Room 395, can accept a claim. A late claim application may be made within a reasonable time, not more than one year after the claim accrued, under section 911.4. UM and UIM claims have their own two-year rule under Insurance Code section 11580.2(i). You must sue the uninsured driver, agree on the amount with your insurer, or start arbitration by certified mail within two years of the accident. For hit-and-run, remember the 24 hour police report and the 30 day sworn statement. Evidence also has a short life. Camera footage and vehicle data vanish in weeks. Call early, even if you are not sure you want a lawyer.

How Moe handles an e-bike or scooter crash case

Moe Abdallah is a Southwestern Law School graduate, State Bar No. 348886. His firm, Moe Abdallah Law, P.C., is at 527 W 7th St, Ste 924, Los Angeles, CA 90014. It holds 5.0 stars on Google. He handles car, truck, motorcycle, pedestrian, bicycle, Uber and Lyft, bus, hit-and-run, uninsured motorist, and other crash cases, so an e-bike or scooter rider hit by any of those vehicles is covered. Here is what he does. He reads the report and the scene for who caused the crash, then builds the fault answer before the insurer gets its story out. He sorts out every policy that could pay, from the driver's liability limits to your own UM/UIM. He gathers medical records so the claim shows the full cost of your treatment, including future care. He deals with the adjuster so you do not have to. He has seen low offers. In one crash case the at-fault insurer offered $900. Moe collected the at-fault limit and pursued a UIM claim, for $75,000 total. In another, an uninsured client with a broken sternum recovered $105,000, which covered hospital bills and future treatment. Past results do not predict a similar outcome. Every case depends on its own facts. The consultation is free. Moe works on contingency, so you pay no fee unless he wins. He is available 24/7 at (323) 716-1992, and he keeps clients updated by call and text.

Frequently Asked Questions

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Get help with your own case

Every crash is different, and the rules above play out differently in each one. If you were hurt, see how Moe handles your kind of case: Los Angeles Car Accident Lawyer, Los Angeles Truck Accident Lawyer, Los Angeles Motorcycle Accident Lawyer, Los Angeles Pedestrian Accident Lawyer, or Los Angeles Uninsured Motorist Lawyer. He reviews your case for free, 24/7, and you pay nothing unless we win.

Authoritative resources: California Courts, self-help for injury claims · Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 335.1, 2-year deadline · California DMV · California Office of Traffic Safety, crash data