Beware Tuesdays: e-scooter workers' comp claims triple

Beware Tuesdays: e-scooter workers’ comp claims triple

13 March 2023

Workers’ compensation claims for e-scooter crashes have more than tripled in three years, with almost 16 claims made on average every month in 2022, up from less than five in 2019, research funded by RACQ has found.

Tuesdays are the most common day for an e-scooter crash, the Jamieson Trauma Institute (JTI) study says, and there were 421 e-scooter-related workers compensation claims made between the end of 2018 and October last year.

Most claims were made by males, and more than a third of claimants were aged 25-34, and around a quarter 35-44.

“If you’re riding an e-scooter to work make sure you’re well versed in the road rules, stick to the speed limits and wear the correct protective equipment,” JTI Professor Kirsten Vallmuur said.

RACQ is urging electric scooter riders to give themselves extra time to get to work as the data reveals more crashes (36%) occur on the morning commute than on the way home (29%), indicating some people rush to work – and significantly increase their chance of crashing.

RACQ Principal Technical Researcher Andrew Kirk says more and more people are using e-scooters as part of their daily commute and people need to remember how dangerous they can be.

“We’re often scrambling to get into the office or wherever we may need to be,” he said. “Accept that it’s better to be a couple of minutes late than seriously injure yourself and end up in hospital.”

The research was done as part of RACQ’s partnership with the RBWH Foundation.