Electric scooters, often called e-scooters, are a popular form of micromobility transport. They’re also surprisingly dangerous.
From battery-related fires to a sharp increase in injuries, e-scooters are taking a toll on Canadians. We wrote about the alarming number of battery fires in Toronto earlier this week, but a new report from CBC News calls attention to e-scooter injuries, particularly involving children.
SickKids’ pediatric emergency physician Dr. Daniel Rosenfield told CBC News he’s seen an “exponential rise” in injuries from e-scooter crashes. Putting it into numbers, SickKids saw 26 e-scooter injury cases in 2023, climbing to 46 in 2024 and then 107 in 2025. Rosenfield says the hospital is likely going to surpass that this year.
And it isn’t just SickKids or Canada. A survey published by the Canadian Pediatric Society (CPS) conducted from late 2025 to early 2026 details various e-scooter crashes, including 26 hospitalizations lasting over two days, 12 intensive care unit (ICU) admissions, and 10 deaths. Head injuries were present in about half the cases.
Moreover, most of the severe injury cases involve riders who didn’t wear helmets, and most involved boys aged between 10 and 15 years old. So, obviously, wear a helmet and use proper protection when riding e-scooters, but there’s more to it than that.
Part of the issue stems from unclear regulations around e-scooters. They’re often marketed as toys, but can reach high speeds, sometimes going from zero to 40km/h in a matter of seconds. In some cases, top speeds can reach as fast as 70km/h. Couple those high speeds with young riders who might not be familiar with the rules of the road and who are typically less risk-averse, and it’s a recipe for severe injuries.
Canada does have some rules in place around e-scooters, but the laws can vary significantly from province to province. Some provinces, including Ontario, Quebec, and B.C., cap e-scooter speeds around 25km/h. Other provinces and some cities have banned the devices entirely.
Clearer rules around e-scooters could help improve safety, whether that’s improving issues around batteries or preventing more kids from injuring themselves riding scooters. It’s just a matter of figuring out what those rules should be.
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