A class action lawsuit has been filed in California state court alleging that electric scooter companies have committed “gross negligence” related to injuries sustained by both riders and pedestrians.The suit specifically named four companies: Bird, Line, Xiaomi and Segway.
The injuries listed included hands, fingers, knees and faces. In multiple cases, the plaintiffs needed stitches or surgery. The lawsuit went as far as to claim the companies were “aiding and abetting assaults” and said the companies are liable because the scooters are unsafe, have manufacturing or design defects, and lack adequate instructions and warnings of the risks. The complaint asked for monetary compensation and punitive damages, but didn’t list an amount, alleging that it should “be determined by the Court.”
In a statement to The Washington Post, Bird pointed out that the complaint has been brought “against the entire e-scooter industry” and said shared e-scooters have become an important transportation mode “for hundreds of thousands of people in over a 100 cities worldwide.” “We believe that the climate crisis and our car dependency demand a transportation mode shift, and clean energy vehicles like e-scooters are already replacing millions of short car trips,” the statement reads. “There is no evidence that riding an e-scooter presents a greater level of danger to riders than riding a bike. Cars remain the greatest threat to commuters, killing over 40,000 people in the U.S. yearly.”
This blog is intended to provide information to the general public and to practitioners about developments that may impact Oregon class actions.