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Bird scooters are parked in front of a restaurant in Santa Monica, California. A lawsuit filed against Bird accuses a host of competitors of "help and encouragement to the assault". (Lucy Nicholson / Reuters)
The nation's scooter companies are increasingly concerned about security issues related to the safety of these devices – this time in the form of a class action lawsuit filed Friday in California.
The lawsuit, filed in the Los Angeles County Superior Court, accuses two of the largest electric scooter companies, Lime and Bird, as well as other electric scooter companies, of "gross negligence" and "mischief." assault and encouragement ".
The complaint, filed on behalf of eight original complainants, indicates that corporate practices have contributed to injuries in many ways. By "unloading" the scooters on public streets without proper warning, the prosecution alleges that electric scooter companies acted negligently and should have known that their aircraft would become a dangerous "public nuisance".
Three complainants claim that they were walking when motorcyclists crashed behind them, causing serious injuries. The lawsuit alleges that scooter manufacturers knew that their drivers injured pedestrians and – by failing to prevent collisions from occurring – aided and abetted scooter drivers when they committed "assaults".
The complaint also states that the scooters of both companies contain defective electronic and mechanical components, as well as insufficient safety instructions for bikers and that they have "a complete lack of respect for the safety of others". The risks presented by the devices, the combination, "were known and / or knowable" on the basis of "professional knowledge" known to the transport community.
The lawsuit makes many claims about the mechanical problems of scooters, but provides no concrete evidence to support these claims.
The lawsuit also refers to the makers of Xiaomi United States and Segway scooters as defendants.
"While defending the laudable objectives of promoting freedom and the mobility of people and the protection of the environment, the defendants, and each of them, endanger the health, safety and security of people. the well-being of cyclists, pedestrians and the general public, "says the pursuit. .
The lawsuit adds that "hundreds (if not hundreds) of passengers, pedestrians, and members of the public have suffered, continue to suffer, and will continue to suffer considerable and preventable injuries and harm to themselves and their property." .
[[[[The use of scooters is rising in major cities. The same goes for visits to the emergency room.]
The spokesmen for Segway and Xiaomi USA have not responded to a request for comment.
A spokesman for Lime said the company was reviewing the complaint.
"Even if we do not comment on ongoing litigation, safety has always been at the heart of everything we do in Lime – and our mission is to reduce street cars in the city and make them safer and more secure. ecological for pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists. Said the spokesperson, adding that the company "is proud to take proactive security measures wherever we are."
In a statement released by Bird, the company pointed out that the complaint had been filed "against the entire electric scooter business" and indicated that shared scooters had become an important means of transportation "for hundreds of thousands of people in 100 cities around the world. "
"We believe that the climate crisis and our dependence on the car require a change of mode of transport, and clean energy vehicles, such as electric scooters, are already replacing millions of short trips by car," he says. the press release. "Nothing proves that driving an electric scooter presents a greater danger to bikers than riding a bike. Cars remain the biggest threat to commuters, killing more than 40,000 people in the United States each year. "
Since their sudden arrival in recent months, electronic scooters have been associated with a slight rise in the number of serious injuries in hospitals nationwide, according to emergency room doctors. While the value and popularity of companies such as Bird and Lime have skyrocketed, more and more critics – doctors, former drivers and scooter mechanics – claim that electric scooter fleets are poorly maintained and prone to dangerous mechanical failures.
Two officials of the electronic scooter – one in Dallas and the other in the district – have been involved in crashes leading to their deaths, authorities said.
The class action adds a new category of people to the list of those who fiercely oppose the latest form of controversial transportation sweeping the country: pedestrians.
Among the plaintiffs is David Petersen, a 62-year-old street artist known as "Davy Rocks," who says he was seriously injured after being struck by an electric moped in June.
Dancing for spectators near Santa Monica Pier in California, Petersen, dressed in his "gladiatorial attire," told The Washington Post that he had been hit from behind by a man on a Bird scooter . the man fled the scene. Petersen said the force of the collision had overturned him, but he had managed to mitigate the impact by catching up with his right hand. If he had been a senior citizen or a small child, could he have been killed.
[Fatal e-scooter accident emerges just as California legalizes riding without a helmet]
Petersen said he was suffering from a fractured arm and a severed bicep, an injury that had caused him to miss weeks of work. The muscle had to be surgically reattached with the help of a cadaver transplant, he said.
"My arm will never be the same again, not to mention the five-inch long scar that it has now," he said, pointing out that his arm had lost his rotation and that he was feeling steep. "If Bird is to take advantage of the human meat grinder created in Santa Monica, he should be held responsible for the suffering he has caused."
In addition, the lawsuit accuses Bird and Lime of multiple violations of each company's warranty and alleges that their vehicles are "unsuitable" for repeated use in public places.
Stating that the deployment of electric scooters is illegal, the lawsuit says that it should be banned for every company to continue to deploy scooters in California. In addition to claiming damages, the lawsuit asks scooter companies to include "appropriate warnings and / or instructions" in their applications and vehicles.
Catherine Lerer – a Santa Monica attorney specializing in personal injury claims who represents plaintiffs with attorney Jeffrey Lee Costell – said she had received more than 100 calls from people injured by scooters over the past few years. month. Whether they involve passers-by or pedestrians, injuries are consistent: nose, legs, arms, wrists, wrists and fractured ribs, as well as head injuries and anterior cruciate ligament tears and rotator cuffs requiring intervention surgical.
"We brought this class action against Bird and Lime and the manufacturers of their electric scooters to address the terrible injuries inflicted on their passengers and pedestrians, as well as the harm they cause," said Lerer.
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