Durham Police reported that on September 1, 2026, a 16-year-old suffered life-altering injuries when his e-scooter collided with a van at Whites Road and Finch Avenue in Pickering. The 16-year-old was brought to a Toronto area trauma center for treatment.
An electric kick scooter (e-scooter) is a battery-powered, two-wheeled personal vehicle, with a platform to stand on and handlebars. Think a scooter from the 90s, but with throttle-controlled electric motor.
Yes. The Durham Region opted in to the e-scooter pilot project with the MTO and passed by-laws to permit the use of e-scooters locally.
Micromobility is an umbrella term to describe small, low-speed, lightweight, human- or electric-powered methods of travel. The term includes bicycles, cargo bikes, e-bikes, e-cargo bikes, e-scooters, skateboards, rollerblades, and low-speed vehicles. To count as a micromobility device, certain requirements must be met.
Manual and powered wheelchairs and mobility scooters that are eligible under the Provincial Assistive Devices Program are not categorized as micromobility. A person using any of these devices is considered a pedestrian.
Yes! The Durham Region has passed two by-laws, the Electric Kick Scooter By-law and the amendment extending the by-law. As the rules change and evolve, you can stay up to date at the Region’s FAQ here.
In the Durham Region, you must be 16 or older to ride an e-scooter. While riders of all ages are advised to wear a helmet, riders under 18 must wear one.
You are not allowed to have a passenger ride with you, and you are not allowed to carry, tow, push, or pull any person, device, or object.
Your e-scooter must have a bell or horn kept in good working order.
If you’re riding between half an hour before sunset to half an hour after sunrise, or any time when you aren’t clearly discernable at a distance of 150 metres or less, you or your e-scooter must have a white or yellow light on the front and a red light at the rear.
You are only allowed to ride an e-scooter in a bike lane on a regional road, or, whether the regional road does not have a bike lane, as close as practicable to the right-hand curb or edge of the roadway, or within the paved shoulder. You must dismount an e-scooter within a crosswalk or pedestrian crossover.
Plenty. If you’re using an e-scooter (or letting your kids or loved ones) you should:
If you are a driver, you should:
If you are a pedestrian or other road user, you should:
If your e-scooter is an e-scooter under the provincial policy, you do not need to have insurance. But you should consider how you would handle costs in the event of an accident. Some homeowners or tenant policies may offer limited liability coverage for personal mobility devices, but you should check with your provider.
To be considered an e-scooter, the device must meet certain requirements, including a maximum speed of 24km/h, an electric motor that does not exceed 500 watts, a maximum weight of 45kg, and wheels with a diameter no more than 430 millimetres. If your device doesn’t meet all of these requirements, it may be considered a motor vehicle, which can have huge implications on you if you’re in an accident. For a real-life example of what the consequences can look like, you can read this article about a City of Kingston man who was riding a device travelling 77km/hour in a posted 50km zone and did not have insurance, or a licence.
The age-old lawyer answer: it depends. If you are hit by a vehicle while on your e-scooter, you may have a tort claim. If you are riding an e-scooter and it is involved in a collision with a person, vehicle, or animal, or causes injury or property damage, you must report the collision to the police.
Regardless of fault, if the collision involves a motor vehicle and you’re covered under a valid car insurance policy, you may be entitled to Accident Benefits. With the significant changes to the Statutory Accident Benefits Schedule that came into effect on July 1, 2026, it is now more important than ever to check your auto insurance policy and consider what now-optional accident benefits you may want to opt into. If you do not have or are not covered under a valid auto insurance policy, you may still be able to claim mandatory accident benefits under the policy of the involved vehicle, but you are not entitled to optional benefits.
If you are in an accident other than one involving a motor vehicle, you will not be eligible for Accident Benefits.
Seek treatment for your injuries, ensure you know your reporting obligations, check your insurance coverage, document names and contact information of witnesses, document your treatment, and seek legal advice. If you’ve been in an accident and want to know your rights, contact us today.
Not in Durham but want to know more? You can check out this blog by Gavin Cosgrove on e-scooters in Ottawa, this one by Burke Derbyshire on e-bikes and e-scooters, Rob Murphy’s blog on information for parents, or my blog on e-scooters in Kingston.
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