The director general of the DGT, Pere Navarro, has announced that the DGT will require insurance for users of electric scooters. In statements reported by Diario Vasco, Navarro left no room for doubt when he stated that “bicycles and scooters must have compulsory insurance”. And he went further by stating that “the debate is whether we insure the vehicle, in which case we will have to have a register of vehicles or number plates, or the driver”.

Thus, the DGT’s aim is to approve this measure soon, in addition to some of the current ones: maximum speed of 25 km per hour; compulsory helmets; driving under the influence of alcohol is prohibited; driving with headphones or using a mobile phone is prohibited; driving on pavements and pedestrian areas is restricted; more than one person is prohibited; and it is compulsory to carry a document with the technical characteristics of the scooter.

Although official approval is still pending, at present, and despite the fact that insurance is not compulsory, scooter riders are not exempt from liability if they are involved in an accident.

High accident rate in the Balearic Islands

According to data from the Mapfre Foundation, 13 people died in electric scooter accidents in Spain in 2021, more than twice as many as in previous years. The Balearic Islands is the third autonomous community in terms of accidents, behind only Catalonia and Madrid.

In the report, Mapfre lists two fatal accidents that occurred on the islands in 2021. In April, a 49-year-old man died in Palma after receiving a blow to the head, after falling from an electric scooter and spending five days in hospital. In June, in Portals Nous, a 53-year-old man died after suffering major head injuries after riding without a helmet and at a speed of between 40 and 50 km per hour.

Experts from Fundación Mapfre warn of the importance of wearing a helmet, riding in cycle lanes and 30 zones and not manipulating the speed controller to exceed the 25 km per hour limit established by law.