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Regulatory developments are ramping up with regard to electric scooters and personal mobility vehicles. The latest is compulsory insurance by 2026 at the latest, something that has just been announced by the government and is set out in a draft bill. These vehicles are already involved in 5% of accidents in Malaga city, with a peak of 30 per month, according to data from the Local Police. How should one act in the event of an accident while compulsory insurance is still pending? It is worth remembering that until now, it is only compulsory for hire companies.
Currently, Malaga's city Local Police force is carrying out a special speed control campaign to improve road safety. According to official data, in 83% of accidents involving a scooter, the rider is responsible. The highest causal factor, at 10.5%, is that the scooter rider ran a traffic light. This is closely followed by road anomalies at 9.4%. Three different causes rank next at 7%: inappropriate encroachment on pedestrian areas, poor lane changing and "lack of skill" on the part of the user.
Other less frequent causes include: failure to respect both a yielding right of way and a generic right of way, in 5.8% of cases. Beyond that, the following accident causes are: a pedestrian encroaching on the road, a scooter not respecting the pedestrian crossing, distracted driving, negligent or reckless driving, lack of safety distance, poor merging, improper overtaking, speeding, adverse weather conditions and encroachment into the oncoming lane. In the police documents, numerically irrelevant reasons such as lack of sleep, tiredness or illness also appear.
The analysis shows that accidents involving scooters in the city are still far from those involving motorbikes, which are five times higher and represent a significant workload for public authorities. But it is a growing trend, because scooters are the vehicle of choice in about 7% of journeys in the city of Malaga.
Until compulsory insurance is in place, what should one do in the event of a scooter accident? The Real Automóvil Club de España (RACE) provides key guidelines such as identifying the driver, notifying the Local Police, taking photographs and collecting witness testimonies, and attaching a medical report within 72 hours.
"If you have insurance, it will arrange compensation. If not, the first step would be to make an out-of-court claim by means of a registered letter to the person who caused the accident. This letter should contain all details indicating liability for the accident. The deadline for this step is one year. If the addressee does not respond (or does so in an unsatisfactory manner), it would be necessary to take legal action to claim any costs or compensation. In this case, it is advisable to enlist the help of a specialised lawyer," said RACE. On this point, municipal sources point out that not even 1% of scooter riders in Malaga have insurance.
"If, on the other hand, you are hit by another vehicle while riding a personal mobility vehicle, you will still be entitled to compensation for both the injuries sustained and the material damage to your scooter. This should be dealt with by the insurance company of the vehicle that caused the accident," pointed out RACE, which recalled similar guidelines to those in the opposite case in terms of medical report, identification, etc.
The Local Police act as with any other type of accident. In the case of material or minor damage, a patrol unit usually intervenes. If the damage is serious due to possible negligence or a possible crime, the accident investigation unit, Atestados, will intervene. In the case of trials, the officers can attend as witnesses, but also as experts when an expert report is requested.
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