Nationally, we’ve seen reports of injury and death resulting from accidents involving personal mobility devices (PMDs).

With e-scooter use now legal in South Australia, the state government has implemented certain rules about the use of PMDs, covering things like speed limits, age restrictions and the use of bike lanes.

However, unlike with vehicles and motorbikes, there is no regulation about licensing and registration.

This lack of registration means that there is no Compulsory Third Party insurance policy in effect. Someone injured as a result of an e-scooter rider’s negligence may be left with limited options to seek compensation for their injuries, particularly if the rider has limited or no assets.

When someone is injured as a result of a motor vehicle accident, the calculation of their losses is unique to their personal circumstances.

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Often claims can total hundreds of thousands – and even millions – of dollars. The Compulsory Third Party insurers step in and pay those losses on behalf of the negligent driver.

However, under current laws, injured people will be left to hope that the person who injures them has significant assets to pay for their losses or has an insurance policy that will cover them if they injure someone.

Many e-scooter riders are young people you may not have any significant assets.

If you are unfortunate enough to have been injured by someone riding an e-scooter or other PMD it will be critical to have a plan of action.

The following step-by-step guide is designed to help anyone unfortunate enough to be involved in an accident involving an e-scooter or other PMD:

1. Obtain the rider’s contact details (ideally their full name, address, phone number and photograph of their driver’s licence);
2. Ask the rider if they have insurance (such as home and contents insurance) and obtain details of the insurer and policy number;
3. Obtain the contact details of any witnesses to the incident;
4. Seek treatment for your injuries and continue to report them to your doctor on a regular basis;
5. Report the accident to police;
6. Seek legal advice early so that any liability investigations can be completed whilst evidence (for example, CCTV footage) is still available.

Unfortunately, the types of injuries arising from e-scooter accidents are brain injuries, significant facial injuries and orthopaedic injuries – not just bumps and scrapes.

These are injuries that are going to have quite a significant impact on people for the rest of their lives, through loss of income, medical expenses or requiring assistance around the house.

Knowing what you can do in the unfortunate event that you are hit by an e-scooter will assist you in any personal injury claim.

Brittany Duregon is a Senior Associate at Mellor Olsson Lawyers in Adelaide.