With more than 50,000 rental e-bikes now in London alone, many used by inexperienced riders, motorists are at risk of accidents that aren't their fault – but, as one has learned, this can be difficult to prove. 

Unlike cars, rental bikes have no registration plates, so they can't be readily identified. However, to ensure redress is obtained for anyone in an accident involving them, rental companies insure them against third-party claims.

Transport for London, operator of the capital's Santander-branded e-bikes, does so to the value of £5 million, with a £250 excess. Voi, another operator, provides third-party insurance up to £10m; Lime insures up to £11.6m. 

In the event of an accident involving a third party, e-bike renters are required to exchange details and notify their rental operator. Santander also requires riders to notify the police and obtain a crime reference number.

Recently, Jack Evans, 30, was stationary at traffic lights in Forest Hill, London in his Kia Picanto when a Lime e-bike collided with its passenger door.

However, rather than sharing their details and notifying the rental company, the rider remounted their e-bike and left the scene.

“It happened so quickly,” said Evans. “The rider’s head struck the passenger side window, but before myself or my wife could react, they had gone.” 

The passenger door was damaged in the incident and Evans has been told that repairing it could cost around £500.

He contacted Lime to report the incident but was told that without the rider’s details, the company was unable to pursue his claim.

A spokesperson for Lime told Autocar that the company purchases third-party liability insurance on behalf of riders and that it ‘encourages’ anyone who has an accident involving a Lime e-bike to report the incident by contacting its customer service team.

Autocar asked Lime how many reports of accidents involving its e-bikes damaging property it receives each year and how many have been reported where the rider has not given their details. However, despite repeated requests, the company failed to answer our questions.  

Meanwhile, medics claim to be experiencing a rise in patients with lower-leg injuries suffered as a result of accidents sustained while riding rental e-bikes.

Alex Liddle, a consultant orthopaedic surgeon specialising in hip and knee surgery at King Edward VII’s Hospital in London, told The Telegraph: “It’s a really common cause of leg injuries today. [The riders] are people who lose balance and fall off, and riders who are just about to stop or are stationary but the bike falls on them.” 

Liddle said a lot of sufferers were inexperienced riders unfamiliar with the weight of the e-bikes (many weigh around 35kg, compared with 10kg for a traditional pedal bike). “They need to know how heavy they are so they don’t stop suddenly on them,” he added.