Malaga e-scooter riders injury rate up 40 times over, and 87% aren’t wearing helmets

Nearly nine in ten people treated for e-scooter injuries in Malaga had one thing in common. No helmet.

Steep rise in e-scooter accidents

Researchers at the University of Malaga have documented a dramatic climb in e-scooter injuries across the city, with cases rising from two incidents per 100,000 residents in 2018 to 80 in 2023. Findings come from a thesis by Juan Melgar, supervised by Dr Iskandar Tamimi and carried out with Dr Enrique Guerado, Dr Almudena Perez and Dr David Gonzalez Quevedo, drawing on records from more than 400 patients treated in emergency departments between 2018 and 2022.

Money spent treating these injuries has climbed an eye-watering amount. A separate study by another UMA student found the annual cost linked to scooter accidents grew more than thirtyfold in five years, from around €13,000 in 2018 to nearly €500,000 in 2023, covering both healthcare bills and lost working days.

Bruises, breaks and a face-first problem

Most injuries turned out to be contusions, accounting for 72% of cases, followed by fractures at 12.9%, open wounds at 12.6% and dislocations at 2.5%. Facial bones bore a disproportionate share of the damage, with Dr David Gonzalez noting that 34.5% of all fractures occurred in the face, with wrist fractures making up a further 13.5%. The scary fact is that among the patients treated, a huge 87% had ridden without a helmet.

Age and alcohol make matters much worse

Older riders faced worse outcomes, researchers found. “We saw a direct association between age and severity, the older the rider, the more severe the injuries,” Tamimi explains, adding that scooters aren’t advisable for anyone over 60. Drinking and drug use, particularly at night, compounded the risk further.

Off the pavement, onto the road

Traffic rules that have been brought in after the study have changed where collisions happen but not eliminated them. Investigators found that knocking down pedestrians on pavements has given way to a rise in collisions with vehicles on the road.

Interestingly, more collisions haven’t meant more serious ones. Tamimi points out that low speeds have kept most of these road incidents from turning serious, even as their numbers have grown. Falls from the scooter itself are the leading cause of injury, according to Gonzalez, making up more than 70% of accidents, while collisions with cars account for around 15%.