Adelaide, South Australia – April 4, 2021: Neuron E-scooters parked in Adelaide city centre ready to ride on a bright day

Energy Safe Victoria (ESV) has led the expansion of international safety standards for battery-powered personal e-transporters, such as electric scooters.

The rise in popularity of electric scooters, or e-scooters, has increased as a convenient way to move people short distances, avoiding traffic and reducing reliance on public and private transport.

The expanded Standard, published on 14 October 2022, sets out safety requirements for e-transporters, including lithium batteries and compatibility for power supplies, ensuring safety and correct charging characteristics are met.

The Standard also includes requirements for water ingress, temperature and vibration testing to ensure electrical components do not come loose, overheat or become contaminated during use.

The process started in November 2016, following a number of Victorian housefires and recalls involving hoverboards.

This prompted ESV to develop Australia’s first electrical safety requirements for battery-powered self-balancing personal transport devices, which led to a 12-month ban on hoverboards that did not comply.

These requirements were then used to establish the first Australian and New Zealand Standards and were also submitted to the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) for development of an international standard.

The new version of the safety standard IEC 60335-2-114 includes e-scooters, electric skateboards and self-balancing transport devices, such as hoverboards and monocycles.

Electric bicycles, motorbikes and cars are excluded as they are already addressed by other technical committees and standards.

In 2023, Australia is expected to adopt the international safety standard. Further work is underway internationally to develop additional standards for the performance, reliability and other safety-related requirements for these devices.

“ESV is immensely proud to have led the introduction and expansion of safety standards for emerging technologies,” ESV chairperson and commissioner Marnie Williams says.

“As the popularity and use of e-scooters and other personal e-transporters grows around the world, so will the reliance on new standards to keep the community safe. ESV will continue to play a leading role in using regulation and standardisation to provide safer outcomes for emerging technologies.”