Accident Compensation Corporation claims for e-scooter injuries in Whangārei have shot up more than four-fold in the six months a Beam e-scooter trial was held in the city.

Whangārei District Council introduced the six-month Beam-scooter
trial in December last year, with the bright purple scooters becoming a feature around town.

And after it ended in May, the council has this month given the green light for the scooter to be a permanent part of the city’s transport options.

The council’s e-scooter approval came in spite of opposition from the Northland Disability Action Group, which did not want them to become permanent in Whangārei.

Jeff Devine, Northland Transportation Alliance strategy and planning manager, said the group’s e-scooter concerns were being taken on board.

Group representatives would be invited to assist with additions to the e-scooters’ code of practice.

The group’s main concern was e-scooters blocking mobility access because of users’ poor parking on footpaths.

Beam Mobility delivered 200 e-scooters to Whangārei’s streets in December and they had done 50,000 trips. There had been 13,000 users with 37,000km of motor vehicle travel saved.

But another side of the scooters is the increase in ACC claims since they were introduced.

And ACC said while all the claims cannot be definitely attributed to Beam scooters, the number of injuries had shot up since they were introduced.

In the six months to the end of May this year there were 53 new ACC claims made in Whangārei for injuries attributed to riding e-scooters, with the cost of those treatments so far standing at $27,766.

By comparison, in the six months to the end of May 2021 there were only 12 new claims made from e-scooter injuries with ACC at a total cost of $12,159.

James Whitaker, ACC injury prevention lead said e-scooters are a convenient way to get around town, but it’s important to look after yourself and others you share the footpath with. Most injuries are preventable by taking a moment to “have a hmmm” and think about what could go wrong.

“If you are going to use an e-scooter be sure to ease your way into it, don’t go full throttle straight away, wear a helmet, and don’t mix e-scootering with alcohol,” Whitaker said.

He said preventing injury to yourself and others is easy by following a few simple safety steps.”

ACC’s top tips for staying safe on e-scooters:

■ Share the space: respect the people around you by allowing space when passing, and if
on the road, follow the road rules.

■ Wear a helmet: it should fit nice and snug and have two fingers of space from your eyebrows. If you do fall off and have a serious knock to the body or head, see a doctor.

■ Start off slow: if you’ve never ridden a scooter before, get a feel for it first and find your balance before you go racing off.

■ Have fun: most of all, enjoy being out and about, and trying something new.

ACC said e-scooters are identified where the accident description includes one of the following keyword combinations with some spelling variation: battery powered scooter, beam scooter, electric scooter, electronic scooter, e-scooter, flamingo scooter, green scooter, jump scooter, lime scooter, motorised scooter, neuron scooter, uber scooter, wave scooter.

All figures are GST exclusive, and cover all treatment and entitlements incurred for that claim, except bulk-funded services where costs are not allocated to individual claims.

Bulk-funded services include the majority of emergency ambulance services funding, as well as the cost of acute treatment at public hospitals, which we bulk-fund through our $670.9 million contribution to Public Health Acute Services (PHAS).

Claims managed by an accredited employer are not included.

Claims are included where the accident location is within the Whangārei District. The client does not necessarily reside or seek treatment in the district.

The Beam e-scooters’ Whangārei range will remain roughly the same. However, the transport option’s range out to Onerahi will be expanded.

The e-scooters’ speeds in the central Town Basin will be reduced to effectively zero in the wake of the trial, as the number of people in the area increases following the opening of the Hundertwasser Art Centre with Wairau Māori Art Gallery.

The travelling speeds will also be newly reduced between the Town Basin’s canopy bridge and Claphams National Clock Museum.

Speeds around the rest of the Hatea Loop – Huarahi o te Whai shared pathway walking track will remain much the same, with localised lowered speeds in spots of high use.