In an earlier blog titled What You Need to Know About E-bikes! I provided information about the proliferation of e-bikes and how personal lines insurance policies respond (or more likely don’t respond) for claims related to e-bikes. I’d encourage you to find about three minutes to read each of those blogs.
It’s only gotten worse, as I see it, regarding e-bikes. In a press release just a month ago, the Penn State Health Children’s Hospital stated, “…doctors have already treated more kids injured in scooter and e-bike accidents in 2025 than the prior three years combined.” Another article I read stated that e-bike injuries have increased tenfold over the past few years. Within the past few weeks, I’ve received two emails highlighting insurance issues related to e-bikes.
Most recently, an agent emailed me stating that the parents he insured bought an off-road e-bike for their ten-year-old son. (I don’t know the specific bike involved but this bike on Amazon retails for $345, has a top speed of 13.7 miles per hour (mph), and is designed for children ages three to ten!!! If I go “all out” on my “real” bike, I’m lucky to average 11 mph!) It seems that the son collided with a car (oh yeah, it was a BMW) that was parked in the owner’s driveway. The damage to the rear bumper was a cool $12,000! The car owner didn’t want to file an auto claim and looked to the parents of the young boy for reimbursement.
In an email from another agent, an adult insured was on his e-bike and entered an intersection (details were not specific on the included police report). A large pickup truck swerved to avoid hitting the biker, though contact was made, and, in doing so, the truck crashed into a concrete light pole. The auto insurer paid the loss and then sent subrogation to the biker. Get ready for this… the amount was $38,000! Yes, THIRTY-EIGHT THOUSAND DOLLARS!
Each policy is different, but I’d question insurance coverage for either accident.
Granted, these situations could have arisen from the use of a real bike as opposed to an e-bike, but because the weight and speed of e-bikes is greater, the probability of loss is also greater.
E-bikes are certainly not toys for children. For some older kids and adults, I put them in the same category as motorcycles. My personal view is that the “explosion” of e-bikes, along with the associated injuries and insurance coverage, will continue.
The takeaways:
- The proliferation of e-bikes continues.
- Few customers consider insurance when purchasing e-bikes.
- Insurance coverage is, at best, questionable for e-bikes. Seek a separate policy.
- Stay in touch with customers concerning the ownership of e-bikes, as well as with anything else that is motorized or floats.
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