MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Government publishes research report into e-bike battery safety

The Government has published new independent research into the safety of e-bike and e-scooter lithium-ion batteries, chargers and e-bike conversion kits.

The Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) commissioned Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG) to produce the research to improve Government’s evidence base on the risks associated with unsafe e-bike and e-scooter batteries and chargers, following a rise in the number of fires in the UK related to these products, some of which have sadly led to fatalities.

The research gives new insight into:

• how battery failures occur during real-world use and environments, including scenarios of foreseeable misuse or modification
• the types of processes and materials used in product manufacture that achieve safer design and safer use of lithium-ion batteries
• potential shortcomings in technical requirements in product standards that have not kept pace with technological innovation

The research brings together evidence and data from the UK and overseas with input from stakeholders and businesses across the supply chain. This evidence gathering has been supported by detailed technical product inspections and product testing in laboratory settings.

Read the research on battery safety.

OPSS is carefully assessing the evidence to inform our future activity and is working to support wider Government and interested stakeholders on future actions that could be taken to improve the safety of these products. 

A WMG spokesperson said: “We are delighted to have had the opportunity to assist OPSS to achieve a deeper understanding of the root causes of these battery fires.”

OPSS is already undertaking a programme of enforcement and market surveillance activity. In December 2024, the Government published new statutory guidelines for businesses producing and distributing lithium-ion batteries for e-bikes. The guidelines set out that such batteries must contain mechanisms capable of preventing thermal runaway to be considered safe products.

Read the statutory guidelines on lithium-ion battery safety for e-bikes.

OPSS is also assessing products and conducting checks on businesses selling e-bikes, e-scooters and kits used to convert standard bikes to e-bikes, both online and on the High Street. Since 2022, there have been 21 product recalls, and 29 Product Safety Reports published for unsafe or non-compliant e-bikes or e-scooters subject to corrective action.

This activity follows the launch of Government’s Buy Safe, Be Safe consumer information campaign which launched in October 2024 to raise awareness of these risks, and provided safety advice for consumers purchasing e-bikes, e-scooters and lithium-ion batteries.

Find out more about the Buy Safe, Be Safe campaign.