By Jay Wasserman

Electric bicycles and stand-up scooters are now part of ordinary traffic in Florida. They carry commuters along A1A and Las Olas, students to campus in Orlando and Gainesville, and a very large number of twelve-to-fifteen-year-olds to school, the beach, and each other’s houses. Palm Beach County staff recently reported 613 micromobility-related injuries since January 2023 in that county alone, with a majority involving children between 12 and 15.

When one of these devices is involved in a crash, the injury claim works differently from a car case, and in ways that surprise almost everyone. The device usually carries no insurance and is not required to. Whether the rider can collect PIP is not settled for every kind of device. The rules about where and how fast it may be ridden can change from one side of a street to the other, because Florida has handed much of that regulation to cities and counties. And a single fact about the device, such as whether it has working pedals or how big its motor is, can move it out of the e-bike category altogether.

This article covers the rules that decide these cases, whether you were the one riding or the one who was hit.

What the law calls these devices

Florida’s traffic code, Fla. Stat. § 316.003, sorts these devices into categories, and the category decides almost everything else.

Electric bicycle. A bicycle or tricycle equipped with fully operable pedals, a seat or saddle, and an electric motor of less than 750 watts that meets one of three classes:

Class 1: the motor helps only while the rider pedals and stops helping at 20 mph.
Class 2: the motor can move the bike without pedaling, using a throttle, and stops helping at 20 mph.
Class 3: the motor helps only while the rider pedals and stops helping at 28 mph.

Motorized scooter. A motor-powered vehicle, with or without a seat, designed to travel on not more than three wheels, and not capable of going faster than 20 mph on level ground. The term does not include an electric bicycle.

Micromobility device. Motorized scooters and electric bicycles, together with other motorized transportation devices that cannot go faster than 20 mph on level ground. Shared rental scooters fall here.

The definitions matter because of what falls outside them. A device sold as an “e-bike” that has no working pedals, a motor well above 750 watts, or a top speed well past 28 mph is not an electric bicycle under Florida law, whatever the box says. Many of the high-powered electric dirt bikes and “e-motos” now common in South Florida neighborhoods fall in that group. Depending on its specifications, such a device may legally be a moped or a motorcycle, which brings in registration, title, a license or endorsement, and different insurance rules. Whether the operator complied with any of them is often the first question in the case. The vetoed 2026 bill discussed below would have created a separate “electric motorcycle” category. It did not become law, so the classification still has to be worked out device by device.

No license, no registration, no insurance

For devices that do meet the definitions, Florida law removes most of the requirements that apply to cars.

Under § 316.20655, an electric bicycle and its operator have the rights and privileges, and the duties, of a bicycle and its rider, including the bicycle rules in § 316.2065. An e-bike and its operator are not subject to the laws on financial responsibility, driver or motor vehicle licenses, vehicle registration, or title certificates. Under § 316.2128, the operator of a motorized scooter or micromobility device likewise has the rights and duties of a bicycle rider, needs no driver license, and the device does not have to meet the registration and insurance requirements that apply to motor vehicles.

The practical result is that an e-bike or scooter crash usually has no insurance policy written for the device. That is the starting point for everything that follows about where the money comes from.

The rules of the road, and why they change at the city limit

Because e-bike and scooter riders carry the duties of bicyclists, the bicycle rules in § 316.2065 do most of the work in deciding fault: riding with traffic, obeying signals, using lights at night, and, when riding on a sidewalk, yielding to pedestrians and giving an audible signal before passing them. Helmets are required for riders and passengers under 16.

On top of the statewide rules, Florida lets local governments write their own. Both statutes have long let cities and counties regulate where and how these devices are ridden, and in 2025 the Legislature expanded that authority. Under the 2025 amendments (ch. 2025-149, effective July 1, 2025), a local government may adopt minimum age requirements and require riders to carry government-issued photo identification. Florida still has no statewide minimum age for riding an e-bike.

In 2026, local governments began using that authority:

Sunny Isles Beach adopted rules, effective in August 2026, requiring e-bike riders to be at least 16 and to carry photo ID.
The City of Miami approved an ordinance on first reading in September 2026 that would set a minimum age of 16 for riding on the street, restrict sidewalk riding, and allow civil citations.
Miami-Dade County adopted an ordinance in July 2026 setting a 20 mph limit and banning sidewalk riding on a stretch of Crandon Boulevard on Key Biscayne, with civil penalties of $250 and $500.
Fort Lauderdale commissioners are working on an ordinance, discussed in October 2026, that would set a minimum age of 16 and restrict riding in parks and on sidewalks, with enforcement expected to begin in 2027.
Palm Beach County voted 7-0 this month to advance an ordinance for unincorporated areas that would set a minimum age of 14, require photo ID, cap speeds at 15 mph on sidewalks, bike lanes, and paths, and 10 mph within 50 feet of a pedestrian. A final hearing is scheduled for December. Wellington has adopted its own minimum age of 15, and the Town of Palm Beach restricts e-bikes and scooters on its sidewalks.

Several of these measures are still moving through the local process, and others will follow. For an injury case, the point is that a violation of a local ordinance can be evidence of negligence, and which ordinance applies depends on exactly where the crash happened. A rider who was lawfully on a sidewalk in one jurisdiction may have been violating an ordinance a block away. Pinning down the location, and the rules in force there on that date, is part of building the liability case.

The statewide bill that was vetoed

The Legislature tried to set statewide rules in 2026. SB 382 passed both chambers unanimously. Among other things, it would have limited e-bikes to 10 mph on sidewalks and shared paths when a pedestrian was within 50 feet, made it an infraction to modify an e-bike in certain ways, and created a micromobility safety task force. Governor DeSantis vetoed the bill on June 25, 2026, objecting that the 50-foot speed rule would be hard for a rider to measure, that it would lead to speed enforcement by local surveillance, and that the task force had no end date.

So, as of this writing, the statewide e-bike rules are the ones that existed before the 2026 session, plus the local authority added in 2025. The issue is likely to come back in the 2027 session.

If you were riding: PIP and the threshold

When a car hits a pedestrian or a bicyclist in Florida, the injured person can usually collect personal injury protection benefits, because § 627.736 extends PIP to people struck by a motor vehicle while not an occupant of a self-propelled vehicle. Our guide to pedestrian and bicycle accidents explains how that coverage works and the order in which policies pay.

For e-bike and scooter riders, the answer is less certain. A pedal bicycle is plainly not self-propelled. A device with a motor that can move it without pedaling, such as a Class 2 e-bike with a throttle or a stand-up scooter, gives an insurer an argument that the rider was occupying a self-propelled vehicle and is outside PIP. Florida courts have decided the “self-propelled” question for mopeds and gas scooters case by case, looking at the particular machine. We are not aware of a Florida appellate decision that settles it for modern e-bikes or e-scooters, and the answer may differ between a pedal-assist Class 1 bike and a throttle-driven scooter. A device that is legally a moped or motorcycle is generally outside PIP.

Two points follow:

Make the PIP claim anyway, and do it right. If PIP may apply, the 14-day rule applies with it: initial treatment must be received within 14 days of the crash, and full benefits of up to $10,000 require a diagnosed emergency medical condition. Missing the window because the coverage question looked uncertain gives up a benefit that may well have been available.
The PIP answer changes the pain-and-suffering rules. Under § 627.737(2), a person entitled to PIP must prove a permanent injury, significant scarring or disfigurement, or significant and permanent loss of an important bodily function to recover noneconomic damages from the driver. If the rider is not entitled to PIP, that threshold generally does not apply. So an insurer that denies PIP may have made the rest of the claim easier. Which side of that line a case falls on should be decided early, with the device’s actual specifications in hand.

PIP was not repealed in 2026. Repeal bills were filed again and died in committee, so the no-fault rules above remain in force.

If you were riding: where the rest of the money comes from

PIP, where it applies, covers only part of medical bills and lost wages. The real recovery usually comes from these sources:

The driver’s bodily injury liability coverage. Florida does not require drivers to carry it, and many carry low limits or none.
Your own uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage. UM follows the person, not the vehicle. If you or a resident relative carry UM on an auto policy, it generally covers you while riding, including after a hit-and-run, subject to the policy’s terms and prompt reporting. In e-bike and scooter cases it is often the largest source of recovery. See our guide to uninsured motorist claims.
The vehicle owner. Under Florida’s dangerous instrumentality doctrine, the owner of a car is generally liable for the negligence of anyone driving it with permission, so a crash caused by a borrowed or company car may have a second policy behind it.
A defect claim. Brake failures, frame and fork fractures, throttle problems, and lithium-ion battery fires can support a product liability claim against the manufacturer, distributor, or seller. Keep the device, the battery, and the charger exactly as they are.
A road or path claim. A pothole, a broken path edge, or a missing sign may support a claim against the government entity responsible. Those claims have their own notice rules and damages caps, explained in our guide to claims against the government.

If you were hit by a rider

Pedestrians and other riders hit by an e-bike or scooter face a different problem. The rider has no required insurance, and the device has no policy of its own. The possible sources of recovery are these:

The rider’s homeowner’s or renter’s policy, or a parent’s. Personal liability coverage may cover the rider’s negligence, but many policies exclude motorized vehicles, and the wording varies. Whether an e-bike or scooter falls inside the exclusion depends on the exact policy language and the device, so the policy itself has to be read.
The rider personally, which often means a judgment that is hard to collect.
The parents or the owner, in some cases. Florida does not make parents automatically liable for a child’s negligence, but a parent or owner who hands a powerful device to a child known to ride recklessly, or one too young to handle it, may face a negligent entrustment or negligent supervision claim. Where a local age ordinance applies, the parent’s decision to let an under-age child ride can be strong evidence.
A rental company, in limited circumstances, such as a defective rental scooter or poor maintenance.
Your own coverage. Your health insurance pays medical bills in the meantime. PIP and UM generally do not apply, because both depend on an injury caused by a motor vehicle, and an e-bike or scooter that meets the statutory definitions usually is not one. A high-powered device that is legally a moped or motorcycle may be a different story, and policy definitions vary, so check the policy.

Rental scooters and e-bikes: the app terms and the release

A rider on a shared Lime, Bird, or similar device agreed to the company’s terms of service in the app before starting the ride. Those terms typically include a release of claims against the company, an arbitration clause, and a requirement that the rider be at least 18.

Florida enforces releases that are clear and unambiguous, even if they do not use the word “negligence” (Sanislo v. Give Kids the World, Inc., 157 So. 3d 256 (Fla. 2015)). But a release has limits:

It binds only the parties to it. A rider’s agreement with a scooter company does not release the driver who hit the rider, or that driver’s insurer.
It may not reach everything. Whether it covers a defect claim, gross negligence, or a claim by someone who was not riding depends on its wording.
Minors are treated differently. In Kirton v. Fields, 997 So. 2d 349 (Fla. 2008), the Florida Supreme Court held that a parent’s pre-injury release of a child’s claims for a commercial activity is unenforceable. The Legislature then enacted § 744.301(3), which allows a parent to waive a child’s claims only for the inherent risks of an activity, and only with specific statutory language. A release in an app that a fifteen-year-old clicked through with a parent’s account is a weak defense.

Cities that permit shared scooter fleets generally require the operating company to carry liability insurance, which matters when the claim is that the company’s device or maintenance was at fault.

Comparative fault, helmets, and the evidence

Since 2023, § 768.81(6) bars recovery in a negligence case for a plaintiff found more than 50 percent at fault. The defense in an e-bike or scooter case builds its share of fault out of speed, riding against traffic, riding on a sidewalk where a local ordinance bans it, no lights after dark, two riders on a device built for one, earbuds, and a phone in hand.

Helmet use is not one of those arguments. Under § 316.2065, the failure to wear a bicycle helmet may not be considered evidence of negligence or contributory negligence, and that rule applies to e-bikes through § 316.20655. It does not mean helmet use never comes up, because the defense may still try to argue the injury itself would have been less severe. But an adjuster who cuts an offer because the rider was not wearing a helmet is not applying Florida law.

The evidence that decides these cases disappears quickly:

The device. Its class label, motor wattage, top speed, controller settings, and any modifications decide its legal category and often the PIP question. Do not repair, sell, or return it.
App and device data. Rental apps and many e-bike apps record speed, route, and time. Send a preservation request right away, along with any request for the data.
Video. Business, traffic, doorbell, and dashcam footage is often overwritten within days or weeks.
The local rules. Identify the jurisdiction where the crash occurred and the ordinances in force on that date, including speed limits, sidewalk restrictions, and age rules.

A hypothetical

Hypothetically: a 34-year-old Fort Lauderdale resident commutes to work on a Class 1 pedal-assist e-bike. Riding in a marked bike lane, she is struck by an SUV turning right across the lane into a shopping plaza. She suffers a fractured wrist and a knee injury requiring surgery. The SUV belongs to the driver’s employer, which insures it with a $100,000 bodily injury limit, and she carries $250,000 in UM coverage on her own car policy.

She is seen in an emergency room the same day, which preserves any PIP claim. Her own PIP carrier initially questions whether a motorized bicycle is a “self-propelled vehicle,” but because her bike has no throttle and provides assistance only when she pedals, the claim is pursued and paid. The SUV driver’s insurer argues that she was going too fast in the bike lane. Her bike’s app shows she was traveling at 14 mph, below the speed limit for the road, and a nearby store’s camera shows the SUV turning without signaling. Because she was entitled to PIP, the permanency threshold applies. Her surgeon’s opinion that the knee injury is permanent satisfies it.

The employer’s insurer pays its $100,000 limit. Because her damages exceed that amount, she then pursues her UM coverage for the rest. Had she been hit by an under-age rider on a high-powered e-moto instead, the questions would have been entirely different: whether the device was legally a motorcycle, what policy, if any, covered it, and whether the parents could be liable.

What to do after an e-bike or scooter crash

Get medical care right away, and in any event within 14 days, to preserve any PIP claim.
Call the police and make sure a report is made, particularly if a car was involved or the other party left.
Photograph the scene, the device, the vehicles, and your injuries, and collect witness names and numbers.
Keep the device, battery, and charger as they are, along with your helmet and clothing.
Save the data: screenshots of the rental app ride history or your e-bike app, and the device’s model and specifications.
Report the claim to every policy that may apply: your auto policy, a resident relative’s auto policy, the driver’s insurer, and your homeowner’s or renter’s policy if you were the rider and someone else was hurt.
Do not give a recorded statement about speed or where you were riding until you know the local rules for that location.
Calendar the deadline. Most negligence claims arising after March 24, 2023 must be filed within two years. Our guide to Florida’s personal injury time limits has the details.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a license, registration, or insurance to ride an e-bike in Florida? Not for a device that meets Florida’s definition of an electric bicycle or motorized scooter. State law exempts them from licensing, registration, title, and insurance requirements. A device that falls outside those definitions, such as one with no working pedals or a motor far above 750 watts, may legally be a moped or motorcycle, with very different requirements.

Is there a minimum age to ride an e-bike in Florida? There is no statewide minimum age. Since July 2025, cities and counties may set their own minimum ages and require riders to carry photo ID, and several South Florida jurisdictions have done so or are in the process, with limits ranging from 14 to 16. Riders and passengers under 16 must wear a helmet statewide.

Will PIP cover me if a car hits me while I’m on an e-bike or scooter? Possibly. PIP covers people struck by a car while not occupying a self-propelled vehicle. A pedal-assist e-bike has a strong argument for coverage, while a throttle-driven e-bike or a stand-up scooter is more likely to be challenged. Get treatment within 14 days and make the claim, because the answer depends on the device and the policy.

I was hit by a teenager on an e-bike. Who pays? The rider and the device carry no required insurance. Possible sources include the family’s homeowner’s or renter’s liability coverage, if its motorized vehicle exclusion does not apply, and in some cases a claim against the parents for negligent entrustment or supervision. Your own health insurance will usually cover medical bills in the meantime; PIP generally does not, because the device is usually not a motor vehicle.

I signed the scooter company’s terms in the app. Can I still bring a claim? Often, yes. The release generally does not protect the driver who hit you, and whether it bars a claim against the scooter company depends on its wording and the type of claim. Releases signed on behalf of minors are especially limited under Florida law.

I wasn’t wearing a helmet. Does that hurt my case? Florida law provides that failing to wear a bicycle helmet may not be considered evidence of negligence, and that rule applies to e-bikes. It is not a lawful reason to reduce a claim on fault grounds.

Talk to a Florida e-bike and scooter accident attorney

E-bike and scooter cases depend on details that ordinary car cases do not: the legal category of the device, an unsettled PIP question that changes the rules for pain and suffering, local ordinances that differ from one jurisdiction to the next, rental app terms, and a search for coverage when the device itself has none. KWBR’s auto accident, product liability, and wrongful death practices handle crashes involving cyclists, riders, and pedestrians from our Orlando, Fort Lauderdale, and Boca Raton offices. If you or a family member was hurt in a crash involving an e-bike or scooter, contact us while the device, the data, and the video still exist.

This article is for general informational purposes and is not legal advice. Florida’s e-bike and micromobility rules are changing quickly at both the state and local level, the PIP rules for these devices are not settled, and every case is different; consult a qualified Florida attorney about your situation.

E-Bike and E-Scooter Crashes in Florida: No Registration, No Insurance, a Patchwork of Local Rules, and Who Pays When Someone Gets Hurt