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In an article published in The Legal Intelligencer, Segal McCambridge Shareholder Arturo M. Aviles discusses how refurbished batteries for e-bikes and e-scooters, often imported from China, increase the risk of a potential fire if plugged in overnight. Even as federal legislation remains pending, state and local jurisdictions—and certain college campuses—are crafting their policies against overnight plug-ins.
“Because MMDs [micromobility devices] are electric devices, they are typically plugged in at night to recharge—and those defective batteries have the potential to overheat and catch fire in the dead of night when students are sleeping,” Aviles wrote. “Yale University is just one of many that have since moved to ban e-bikes and e-scooters in residential areas of campus due to the dangerous potential for battery fires.”
In addition to fires, another potential issue Aviles points out is that students riding e-bikes and e-scooters on campus might ride too fast and because these devices are heavy, a collision with another student or stationary object could be devastating.
“It is important that, on campuses especially, administrators work with student groups and the surrounding community to adequately craft safety protocols that allow for mobility and safety for operators and others using pathways,” Aviles writes. “Just as universities spell out their policies on academic honesty and underage alcohol consumption, they must also craft language about mobility device safety.”
Read the story in full; click here.
