Drink driving on an electric scooter

[Mr lestat]

I was reading an article today regarding a chap he was riding an electric scooter in London and he fell off and was charged with drink-driving. As you don’t need a license to ride one of these things and aside the fact they are illegal to ride anywhere on the pavement or on the road how unearth can you have a drink-driving ban if you don’t need a license to ride one. I’m obviously not condoning it his action but it does seem odd.

[Greg the Fish]

One of my old customers at a pub got done for DD a few times on his.

A lot of it depends on the scooter itself. Spec/power/speed etc.

Some are road registered

[SydneyBridge]

Is his drink driving ban just for scooters or all vehicles?
I guess drunk in charge of a vehicle applies, whether that vehicle is legal or not. Also easier to charge than driving an illegal scooter

[Rushjob]

Section 4 RTA 1988 ( amended ) states mechanically propelled vehicle which covers this situation nicely. Job done. I did one guy for this who I stopped driving a site dumper up the A57 in the early hours whist drunk as a lord.

Edited to clarify he was drunk, not me!

Edited by Rushjob on Tuesday 29th December 16:05

[Mr lestat]

I don’t have a picture of it but I assume it’s just a standard electric scooter you see people riding around on so completely illegal in the UK on the roads and pavements

[Hoofy]

It's not odd. They're not a legal form of transport as you are required to have an MOT and insurance as they are seen as a form of motor vehicle. If he has a driving licence, he will lose it. (If he was just caught with it and not drunk, he would get points and a fine.) If he doesn't he will be lucky to not get charged for with driving without a driving licence and insurance.

From the BBC:
Are e-scooters legal in the UK?
Currently, you can buy one but you can't ride it on a UK public road, cycle lane or pavement. Anyone who does is committing an offence.

The only place an e-scooter can be used is on private land, with the permission of the landowner.

At the moment, they are classified as Personal Light Electric Vehicles (PLEVs), so they're treated as motor vehicles and are subject to all the same legal requirements - MOT, tax, licensing and specific construction.

So, because they don't always have visible rear red lights, number plates or signalling ability, they can't be used legally on the roads.

[Rushjob]

Don't over complicate it, its a mechanically propelled vehicle - endex

[GavGav]

They are everywhere in central Bristol. You can't ride your own, but you can hire the council owned e-scooters and ride them on the road. Strange.

[Mr lestat]

Hoofy said:

It's not odd. They're not a legal form of transport as you are required to have an MOT and insurance as they are seen as a form of motor vehicle. If he has a driving licence, he will lose it. (If he was just caught with it and not drunk, he would get points and a fine.) If he doesn't he will be lucky to not get charged for with driving without a driving licence and insurance.

From the BBC:
Are e-scooters legal in the UK?
Currently, you can buy one but you can't ride it on a UK public road, cycle lane or pavement. Anyone who does is committing an offence.

The only place an e-scooter can be used is on private land, with the permission of the landowner.

At the moment, they are classified as Personal Light Electric Vehicles (PLEVs), so they're treated as motor vehicles and are subject to all the same legal requirements - MOT, tax, licensing and specific construction.

So, because they don't always have visible rear red lights, number plates or signalling ability, they can't be used legally on the roads.

Well there are loads of people breaking the law on a regular basis in Nottinghamshire. See them every day being ridden on the road and pavements. Thing is shops like Halfords are assisting by selling them, I know they will say they can only be ridden on private land, however we all know the truth

[Greg the Fish]

further to my earlier post, my apologies, I thought you meant electric mobility scooters.

Anyway, one of the Scooter riding idiots here in Brighton went through a red light in front of a police car.

Got tugged, done for drug driving, no licence, no insurance. Scooter seized. Good!

[Mr lestat]

Here is the article, but if you don’t need a license to ride one even though you are riding it illegally and drunk how can you get points on your license if you don’t need one in the first place

[Rushjob]

Mr lestat said:

Here is the article, but if you don’t need a license to ride one even though you are riding it illegally and drunk how can you get points on your license if you don’t need one in the first place

Because the laws in this country say that you can

Edited by Rushjob on Tuesday 29th December 16:38

[GavGav]

This is what confuses me...

Hoofy said:

...

From the BBC:
Are e-scooters legal in the UK?
Currently, you can buy one but you can't ride it on a UK public road, cycle lane or pavement. Anyone who does is committing an offence.

The only place an e-scooter can be used is on private land, with the permission of the landowner.

And yet you can ride one provided by (or on behalf of) the local council.
Presumably because they can ensure it's roadworthy, insured etc?

[Mr lestat]

They shouldn’t be allowed to sell them if it can’t be controlled how and when they are used.

[LordLoveLength]

A local idiot smashed his car into my parked car one night and was subsequently caught, breathalysed and 3 times over the limit. This was during lockdown. It took a while before he was banned but he then bought himself an e-scooter which I saw him on a number of times, going to the off licence.
Not seen him use it for a month or more now - guessing he was caught again?

Legislation making no distinction between types of motorised vehicle it’s entirely possible he may get a custodial sentence if he’s a repeat offender.

[BoRED S2upid]

I thought these were legal to ride on the road? You can hire them in most major cities now they are great fun.

In response to the OP you can be done for drink driving for anything bike, horse, scooter, you don’t need a licence they can add points to a licence if you ever get one you hear about kids getting done for stealing cars without licences or insurance.

[Rushjob]

BoRED S2upid said:

I thought these were legal to ride on the road? You can hire them in most major cities now they are great fun.

In response to the OP you can be done for drink driving for anything bike, horse, scooter, you don’t need a licence they can add points to a licence if you ever get one you hear about kids getting done for stealing cars without licences or insurance.

Not for the horse I'm afraid, or a pedal cycle or kick scooter - it needs to be either a motor vehicle or mechanically propelled vehicle to hit your licence, however - for the cycle, horse and scooter, you could actually get jail time under the old Town & Police Clauses Act but I'm fairly certain that's fully repealed now. When I was a young PC, we learned that if you were drunk, ride your bicycle, you can only be fined - if you're caught pushing it you can go to jail! One was the Road Traffic Act ( fine) , the other Town & Police Clauses Act ( possible prison! ) The joys of Victorian legislation

[gazza285]

Hoofy said:

So, because they don't always have visible rear red lights, number plates or signalling ability, they can't be used legally on the roads.

You don't need rear lights or signals to be legal on UK roads.

[Mr lestat]

Apparently the ones that are legal are the ones you rent as they have correct insurance, if you buy it privately and own it then can’t be ridden on the road, private land only.

[Lozw86]

From what I have seen and experienced, as long as you ride them respectfully and don't get too drunk the Police don't bat an eyelid