Are self-balancing mini scooters banned from footpaths? If so, why are mobility vehicles allowed? Key questions answered.
I’ve just spent £400 on a ‘hoverboard’ and I want to pop down to the shops on it. What could possibly go wrong?
Quite a lot, though this is mainly dependent on the observational powers of your local police. While it’s not unknown to see such self-balancing mini scooters on the pavement, under legal guidance reiterated on Monday by the Crown Prosecution Service all such “personal transporters”, including hoverboards and Segways, are banned from the footpath.
Oh. Is this new?
No. This has always been the Department for Transport’s (DfT) view on hoverboards, a legal position based on that for Segways. After a test case in 2011, a Barnsley man was fined £75 in 2011 for riding his Segway on the pavement. That was despite the support of former Lib Dem MP Lembit Opik, who arrived at court on a Segway. The judge, Michael Rosenberg, confirmed that Segways were viewed as motor vehicles and so not allowed on pavements.
What’s the legal basis for this?
While hoverboards have been around for only a few years, they are banned from pavements under a section of the 1835 Highways Act, which says people cannot use the footway to “lead or drive any horse, ass, sheep, mule, swine, or cattle or carriage of any description”. That’s the law for England and Wales. Scotland uses a slightly more modern 1984 law.
'Hoverboards' are illegal on both pavements and roads, CPS confirms
Read more
So, if hoverboards are motor vehicles, can I use them on the road?
Again, no. Any motor vehicles used on the road need the user to be licensed and insured, and the vehicle to be registered. However, for a vehicle to be road-legal it must meet a host of conditions connected to construction and things such as lights, under rules known as the European community whole vehicle type approval, or ECWVTA. The EU and DfT say hoverboards and Segways do not meet the ECWVTA.
So where can I ride the damned thing?
Only on private land. So, not even parks. Best if you have a very big, paved garden, or a friend from the landed gentry.
If I can use them on private land, can I ride my hoverboard round the shopping mall?
Still not likely. While shopping centres, stations, airports and many other places are generally private land, whizzing around on a hoverboard requires the permission of the landowner. This tends not to be granted for everyday use. Airports owner BAA has used Segways for staff to get around Heathrow airport, and Usain Bolt was spotted in August riding a hoverboard through the arrival’s section, days after a Segway-riding cameraman floored him at the World Athletics Championships. If you’re not an internationally famous athlete you might have less luck doing this.
Why are powered wheelchairs and mobility vehicles allowed?
Because they fall under special rules. Complex Dft regulations for these vehicles allow “class two invalid carriages” to travel on the pavement to a maximum of 4mph. Class three types can go on the pavement or on the road, with a maximum speed of 8mph. This latter sort must be fitted with lights, indicators, a horn and a rear-view mirror.
And what about electric-powered mini-scooters?
These are treated much the same as Segways and hoverboards – barred from the pavements and not allowed on the roads as they do not meet roadworthiness requirements. And they are arguably even less dignified for an adult than a hoverboard.
What about electric bikes? I see them on the road
This is different. Subject to certain limitations, electric bikes are treated as regular bikes, and thus exempt from laws connected to registration, insurance and so on. The bike must have pedals and the electrically assisted speed is limited to just over 15mph, with a maximum motor power of 200 watts. Oh yes. and you must be 14 or over to ride one.
This is terrible. Can I take my hoverboard on holiday?
This is where, finally, you are in luck. A lot of US states and a number of other countries, for example France, Germany, Ireland and Italy, allow Segways to be used on pavements and cycle lanes, and are thus more tolerant of hoverboards.
Quite a lot, though this is mainly dependent on the observational powers of your local police. While it’s not unknown to see such self-balancing mini scooters on the pavement, under legal guidance reiterated on Monday by the Crown Prosecution Service all such “personal transporters”, including hoverboards and Segways, are banned from the footpath.
Oh. Is this new?
No. This has always been the Department for Transport’s (DfT) view on hoverboards, a legal position based on that for Segways. After a test case in 2011, a Barnsley man was fined £75 in 2011 for riding his Segway on the pavement. That was despite the support of former Lib Dem MP Lembit Opik, who arrived at court on a Segway. The judge, Michael Rosenberg, confirmed that Segways were viewed as motor vehicles and so not allowed on pavements.
What’s the legal basis for this?
While hoverboards have been around for only a few years, they are banned from pavements under a section of the 1835 Highways Act, which says people cannot use the footway to “lead or drive any horse, ass, sheep, mule, swine, or cattle or carriage of any description”. That’s the law for England and Wales. Scotland uses a slightly more modern 1984 law.
'Hoverboards' are illegal on both pavements and roads, CPS confirms
Read more
So, if hoverboards are motor vehicles, can I use them on the road?
Again, no. Any motor vehicles used on the road need the user to be licensed and insured, and the vehicle to be registered. However, for a vehicle to be road-legal it must meet a host of conditions connected to construction and things such as lights, under rules known as the European community whole vehicle type approval, or ECWVTA. The EU and DfT say hoverboards and Segways do not meet the ECWVTA.
So where can I ride the damned thing?
Only on private land. So, not even parks. Best if you have a very big, paved garden, or a friend from the landed gentry.
If I can use them on private land, can I ride my hoverboard round the shopping mall?
Still not likely. While shopping centres, stations, airports and many other places are generally private land, whizzing around on a hoverboard requires the permission of the landowner. This tends not to be granted for everyday use. Airports owner BAA has used Segways for staff to get around Heathrow airport, and Usain Bolt was spotted in August riding a hoverboard through the arrival’s section, days after a Segway-riding cameraman floored him at the World Athletics Championships. If you’re not an internationally famous athlete you might have less luck doing this.
Why are powered wheelchairs and mobility vehicles allowed?
Because they fall under special rules. Complex Dft regulations for these vehicles allow “class two invalid carriages” to travel on the pavement to a maximum of 4mph. Class three types can go on the pavement or on the road, with a maximum speed of 8mph. This latter sort must be fitted with lights, indicators, a horn and a rear-view mirror.
And what about electric-powered mini-scooters?
These are treated much the same as Segways and hoverboards – barred from the pavements and not allowed on the roads as they do not meet roadworthiness requirements. And they are arguably even less dignified for an adult than a hoverboard.
What about electric bikes? I see them on the road
This is different. Subject to certain limitations, electric bikes are treated as regular bikes, and thus exempt from laws connected to registration, insurance and so on. The bike must have pedals and the electrically assisted speed is limited to just over 15mph, with a maximum motor power of 200 watts. Oh yes. and you must be 14 or over to ride one.
This is terrible. Can I take my hoverboard on holiday?
This is where, finally, you are in luck. A lot of US states and a number of other countries, for example France, Germany, Ireland and Italy, allow Segways to be used on pavements and cycle lanes, and are thus more tolerant of hoverboards.
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