E-scooter usage is on the rise in Canada, but with that trend comes a concerning increase in injuries, particularly among younger individuals, as safety regulations struggle to keep up.
Dr. Daniel Rosenfield, a pediatric emergency physician at SickKids hospital in Toronto and chair of the injury prevention committee for the Canadian Pediatric Society (CPS), has observed a significant surge in e-scooter-related injuries, ranging from minor cuts to severe brain trauma and fatalities.
Previously rare, severe injuries are now becoming more common, with the number of e-scooter injury cases at SickKids escalating from 26 in 2023 to 46 in 2024 and a staggering 107 in 2025. Dr. Rosenfield anticipates this year’s figures to surpass previous records.
At the Montreal Children’s Hospital, Dr. Laurie Plotnick, who leads the emergency trauma team, notes a tenfold increase in e-scooter injuries since 2023, often resulting in severe facial and brain injuries among children not involved in collisions with motor vehicles.
A recent CPS survey revealed alarming statistics, including 10 deaths, 12 ICU admissions, and 26 hospitalizations lasting more than two days due to crashes involving personal micromobility devices, predominantly e-scooters. Head injuries were prevalent in approximately half of the cases.
Most notably, severe injuries tend to affect boys aged 10 to 15, with the absence of helmets in the majority of cases exacerbating the severity of the outcomes.
Furthermore, a study published in the Emergency Medicine Journal highlighted a similar trend in the U.K., where e-scooter-related hospital cases surged from fewer than 10 in 2019 to nearly 150 in 2024, with head injuries being predominant and helmet usage scarce.
The real-life experiences of families such as Crystal Dunkley’s son Shawn in London, Ont., underscore the critical need for enhanced safety measures. Shawn’s e-scooter accident, where he was travelling at 69 km/h without a helmet, resulted in a fractured skull and a coma, emphasizing the life-altering consequences of such incidents.
Evidently, the current regulatory framework for e-scooters is inadequate, with unclear and inconsistent laws across provinces and territories. The lack of public awareness regarding age restrictions and speed limits, coupled with ineffective enforcement, further exacerbates the safety risks associated with e-scooter usage.
Dr. Rosenfield and Dr. Plotnick emphasize the urgency for public education, parental awareness, and stricter enforcement to mitigate the escalating e-scooter injury crisis. While recognizing the value of e-scooters in urban mobility, they advocate for comprehensive safety measures to protect riders, particularly vulnerable children and teens.