The situation surrounding the rental of electric scooters and mini-mopeds from Ride Mobility is heating up every day. The Latvian Consumer Rights Protection Center (PTAC) is not going to be polite: the agency is preparing an administrative fine for the company for refusing to freeze operations at the first request. And teenagers in Latvia can still easily rent a scooter.
PTAC Director Zaiga Liepiņa did not hold back her emotions on Friday, calling the behavior of SIA "Ride" pure irresponsibility that endangers people's lives. According to her, the company treats customer protection as a formality: their rules clearly state that scooters can only be ridden by those aged 18 and over, but in reality, no one checks ages. "They insist that such measures are too costly and do not apply to them, even though we are talking about basic safety," added Liepiņa with a note of irritation.
Let us remind you that a petition has started on the platform Manabalss.lv to tighten the rules for rented scooters and e-scooters - so that children under 18 cannot rent them.
In turn, PTAC is awaiting additional clarifications from Ride and is simultaneously gathering data to assess risks - they will be assisted by the Road Traffic Safety Directorate (CSDD), the State Police, and other authorities. As soon as everything comes together, the size of the penalty will be announced. Meanwhile, the head of the registration department at CSDD, Aivis Ozoliņš, explained the essence of the problem: the company cleverly exploits a loophole in the legislation. Their transport is officially classified as "bicycles," although in reality, they are closer to electric mopeds. Thanks to this, Ride bypasses a bunch of obligations, such as vehicle registration and thorough driver verification. "We are already drafting amendments to the traffic law," noted Ozoliņš. "A new category of 'self-propelled bicycles' with strict rules will be introduced to prevent this from happening again."
PTAC stated: after that horrific accident in Imanta, where two girls on Ride scooters were hit by a train, the company should have immediately suspended rentals. Instead, they continued to operate and even filed objections with the center.
The regulator is not stopping at Ride: plans are in place for a total inspection of all companies operating in the scooter and e-scooter rental market. PTAC will request documents, test the equipment, and ensure that the rules are not just dead weight. While the company continues to pedal as if nothing happened, PTAC assures that this will not last long.
Amid all this, a public initiative has started on the platform manabalss.lv: they are collecting signatures for strict restrictions on the rental of electric scooters and scooters for those under 18.
