New data shows that e-bike and e-scooter fires reached a record high last year.
There were 432 fires involving e-bikes during 2025 – a 38% increase from the year before.
Meanwhile, 147 e-scooter fires were reported, 20% more than the 123 incidents seen in 2024.
These incidents are often caused by bad batteries, conversion kits and chargers.
Products purchased from online marketplaces have a higher risk of malfunction, as they are not subject to the same regulation as established retailers.
BatteryIQ’s Nick Bailey said the e-scooters and e-bikes involved in the fire are “always low-cost products” that are manufactured with poor quality control.
He added: “There is also a growing black market for DIY and counterfeit batteries, particularly for delivery riders, which are made using battery cells recovered from disposable vapes.
“I would not keep a battery in my home without constant monitoring – no matter what the manufacturer’s sticker says.”
The PA news agency sent a Freedom of Information request to all 49 fire brigades in the UK and asked for the number of incidents recorded between 2021 and 2025.
The London Fire Brigade recorded its highest number of fires ever, with Greater Manchester and Nottinghamshire identified as hotspots outside the capital.
Picture: London Fire Brigade
Fires from lithium batteries used for e-bikes and e-scooters can spread quickly and produce toxic vapors.
Electrical Safety First warns that the issue is “rapidly becoming a runaway train that needs to be stopped” – with incidents increasing over the past five years.
Lesley Rudd, chief executive of the charity, warned: “Poorly made batteries and accessories are of great concern, and are a major route through which dangerous devices are entering people’s homes.
“Without strong and enforceable changes, lives are in grave danger and sadly further loss of life is inevitable.”
Spencer Sutcliffe, deputy commissioner of the London Fire Brigade, has said he is “extremely concerned” about the “alarming volume” of cases in the capital.
E-scooters and e-bikes are now banned in the Tube as they pose a fire risk.
Picture: London Fire Brigade
Although private e-scooters are banned from being used in public areas across the country, they are often operated illegally in many urban areas.
Which one? warned that unsafe products were “increasingly saturating” online markets, undermining responsible businesses that comply with the law.
The government last week launched a consultation which is designed to boost product safety in the UK.
Under the plans, online marketplaces will be legally required to “prevent, identify and remove dangerous products sold through their platforms”.
