A significant number of electric bikes on UK roads are not legally classified as ebikes, instead operating as illegal electric motorbikes, according to a recent analysis. For a machine to be considered an ebike under current law, it must have a powered speed limit of 15.5mph and its motor must only engage when the rider pedals, not via a throttle.
However, many privately owned electric machines seen across UK towns and cities do not meet these criteria. These devices often feature throttle power and can travel much faster than 15mph, making them illegal electric motorbikes rather than ebikes.
This distinction is highlighted amidst ongoing discussions about cycling in the UK, which often focus on share bikes from companies like Lime and Forest. Councils in London have already seized 3,393 dangerously parked or abandoned share ebikes this year, marking a 23% increase compared to the total for the whole of last year.
The issue of illegal electric motorbikes is described as a law-enforcement and political challenge, particularly given the food-delivery industry's reliance on riders using such machines. The repeated conflation of legal ebikes and these illegal variants is also leading some rail companies to consider bans on all ebikes due to concerns over poorly made batteries in illegal bikes catching fire.