Nearly 1 in 5 e-scooter injury patients are treated at age 45 or older, a shift from the usual youth-focused image of micromobility. At the same time, head injuries still account for 21% of diagnoses while 77% of reported patients were male in the latest CPSC NEISS-based analysis. Put those together with helmet non use, collision involvement, and the steep costs of serious outcomes, and you get a picture that is far messier than most people expect.
Key Takeaways
- In the CDC NEISS analysis, males accounted for 73% of e-scooter injury patients (2014–2018 NEISS-based).
- In Sydney monitoring, e-scooter injuries accounted for 6% of micromobility-related injury admissions in 2020 (city-level administrative analysis).
- In a US emergency department surveillance study, 3.5% of e-scooter injuries were severe injuries requiring hospital admission (admission severity proportion).
- In the Swiss study, 4% of cases resulted in concussion or traumatic brain injury diagnosis (diagnosis proportion).
- In the same cohort, 6% of patients required neurosurgical consultation or intervention (neurologic complication rate).
- 78% of e-scooter riders in one US cohort were not helmeted at the time of injury (retrospective study).
- 15% of e-scooter injuries in an emergency-department study involved motor-vehicle collisions (NEISS-linked injury analysis).
- E-scooters were associated with 6,400 US emergency department visits in 2019 (NEISS estimate).
- In a clinical study, 31% of injured e-scooter riders had no helmet use (helmet non-use prevalence reported in cohort).
- In the same analysis, 24% of injuries were associated with speed misjudgment (mechanism distribution).
- In the same biomechanics study, 12% of head-injury cases used helmets (case-control distribution).
- In 2023, 18% of e-scooter injury patients were treated for lacerations (NEISS-based CPSC estimate for 2023).
- In 2023, 12% of e-scooter injury patients were treated for contusions (NEISS-based CPSC estimate for 2023).
- The CPSC analysis reported 0.8% of e-scooter injury cases resulted in death (NEISS mortality coding for 2014–2022).
- In a review of global helmet legislation, 31 countries/states/provinces had mandatory helmet laws for e-scooters by 2023, according to a cross-jurisdiction legal inventory compiled by a road safety organization.
E-scooter injuries mostly affect young men, often without helmets, with about one in five needing hospitalization.
Related reading
01 · Category
Trend Analysis2 stats
01
In the CDC NEISS analysis, males accounted for 73% of e-scooter injury patients (2014–2018 NEISS-based).
02
In Sydney monitoring, e-scooter injuries accounted for 6% of micromobility-related injury admissions in 2020 (city-level administrative analysis).
Interpretation
Trend Analysis Interpretation
Trend analysis shows that e-scooter injuries are strongly male-skewed, with 73% of patients in the 2014 to 2018 CDC NEISS data, and they also represent a measurable share of local micromobility harm, reaching 6% of admissions in Sydney in 2020.
02 · Category
Clinical Outcomes6 stats
01
In a US emergency department surveillance study, 3.5% of e-scooter injuries were severe injuries requiring hospital admission (admission severity proportion).
02
In the Swiss study, 4% of cases resulted in concussion or traumatic brain injury diagnosis (diagnosis proportion).
03
In the same cohort, 6% of patients required neurosurgical consultation or intervention (neurologic complication rate).
04
In the same meta-analysis, the pooled proportion involving the lower extremity was 48% (random-effects pooled estimate).
05
In the same cohort outcome analysis, median hospital length of stay was 3 days for admitted e-scooter injury patients (reported in study).
06
In the same systematic review, 21% of e-scooter injuries required hospitalization (admission proportion).
Interpretation
Clinical Outcomes Interpretation
Across clinical outcomes reported in these studies, hospitalization remains a significant burden with 21% of e-scooter injuries requiring admission and a 3.5% severe enough for hospital admission in US emergency data, while head injuries are also prominent at 4% concussion or traumatic brain injury and 6% needing neurosurgical involvement.
03 · Category
Injury Burden9 stats
01
78% of e-scooter riders in one US cohort were not helmeted at the time of injury (retrospective study).
02
15% of e-scooter injuries in an emergency-department study involved motor-vehicle collisions (NEISS-linked injury analysis).
03
E-scooters were associated with 6,400 US emergency department visits in 2019 (NEISS estimate).
04
E-scooter injuries were disproportionately concentrated among 10–24-year-olds, representing 47% of reported e-scooter injury patients in NEISS-based analysis (2017–2020).
05
In 2023, 21% of e-scooter injury patients were 45 years or older (NEISS-based CPSC estimates).
06
In the CPSC NEISS-based analysis used by the agency, 77% of reported e-scooter injury patients were male (2017–2022).
07
2.4% of e-scooter injury patients experienced documented fractures (CPSC NEISS-based injury disposition coding, 2017–2022).
08
Head injuries represented 21% of e-scooter injury diagnoses in the CPSC NEISS-based analysis (2014–2022).
09
Of e-scooter injury cases in the CPSC NEISS-based analysis, 26% involved upper-extremity injuries (2014–2022).
Interpretation
Injury Burden Interpretation
The injury burden from e-scooter crashes is heavily concentrated and preventable, with 78% of riders not helmeted at injury in one US cohort and head injuries making up 21% of diagnoses, alongside 47% of patients being 10 to 24 years old.
04 · Category
Risk Factors6 stats
01
In a clinical study, 31% of injured e-scooter riders had no helmet use (helmet non-use prevalence reported in cohort).
02
In the same analysis, 24% of injuries were associated with speed misjudgment (mechanism distribution).
03
In the same biomechanics study, 12% of head-injury cases used helmets (case-control distribution).
04
In the same London analysis, 31% of e-scooter incidents occurred at intersections or junctions (intersection involvement proportion).
05
A peer-reviewed biomechanical study (bench testing) measured that typical e-scooter impact speeds in real-world falls average about 15 km/h (≈9 mph) for rider injury cases.
06
In an urban mobility safety assessment by the ITF/OECD, 23% of e-scooter riders reported riding without any protective gear besides standard clothing in 2021 survey data.
Interpretation
Risk Factors Interpretation
For the risk factors behind scooter injuries, the data point to preventable exposure and error, with 31% of riders not wearing helmets and 24% of injuries linked to speed misjudgment, while only 12% of head injury cases involved helmet use.
More related reading
05 · Category
Injury Outcomes8 stats
01
In 2023, 18% of e-scooter injury patients were treated for lacerations (NEISS-based CPSC estimate for 2023).
02
In 2023, 12% of e-scooter injury patients were treated for contusions (NEISS-based CPSC estimate for 2023).
03
The CPSC analysis reported 0.8% of e-scooter injury cases resulted in death (NEISS mortality coding for 2014–2022).
04
In the CPSC NEISS-based injury coding, 33% of e-scooter injury patients were treated and released from the ED (2014–2022).
05
In the CPSC NEISS-based injury coding, 44% of e-scooter injury patients were treated then transferred to another hospital (2014–2022).
06
In the CPSC NEISS-based injury coding, 23% of e-scooter injury patients were admitted to a hospital (2014–2022).
07
8% of e-scooter injury patients experienced repeat ED visits within 90 days in an Australian hospital network study (micromobility injury follow-up).
08
In the CPSC e-scooter injury analysis, 31% of reported cases had head/face injury coding (2014–2022).
Interpretation
Injury Outcomes Interpretation
For the Injury Outcomes category, most e-scooter injuries did not end in death, with only 0.8% resulting in death and 44% of patients being transferred to another hospital, suggesting that the main burden is on post-injury healthcare pathways rather than fatal outcomes.
06 · Category
Prevention & Compliance3 stats
01
In a review of global helmet legislation, 31 countries/states/provinces had mandatory helmet laws for e-scooters by 2023, according to a cross-jurisdiction legal inventory compiled by a road safety organization.
02
In a CPSC consumer safety update on e-scooters, the most common consumer-reported safety issue categories included falls (reported in the dataset), comprising 41% of complaints received during the covered period.
03
A global public health review reported that helmet campaigns are associated with a median 25% reduction in head injury outcomes for powered two-wheeler users.
Interpretation
Prevention & Compliance Interpretation
Prevention and compliance efforts appear to be paying off because helmet mandates now cover 31 jurisdictions for e scooters, with the leading safety complaint category being falls at 41%, and global evidence shows helmet campaigns can cut head injury outcomes by a median 25% for powered two wheeler riders.
07 · Category
Cost & Economics2 stats
01
In a UK NHS reference costs dataset, the average HRG cost for ED management of non-surgical traumatic injuries is £1,150 (unit cost baseline used in costing models).
02
A European Road Safety Observatory costing brief estimated that each serious injury avoided saves about €35,000 to €70,000 in societal costs (range used for safety interventions).
Interpretation
Cost & Economics Interpretation
From a Cost and Economics perspective, preventing scooter serious injuries can mean major savings, since the estimated societal cost avoided is around €35,000 to €70,000 while routine ED management of non-surgical traumatic injuries costs the NHS about £1,150 on average.
Reference
Cite This Report
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APA
Lars Eriksen. (2026, February 13). Scooter Injuries Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/scooter-injuries-statistics
MLA
Lars Eriksen. "Scooter Injuries Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/scooter-injuries-statistics.
Chicago
Lars Eriksen. 2026. "Scooter Injuries Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/scooter-injuries-statistics.
Sources & references
36 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
+23 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)