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BA REGISTER OF SAFETY-AUDITED E-BIKE BRANDS
COMING SOON: Please note that this page is still under development as we prepare to launch this initiative. It will be updated once the first batch of brand audits are completed. In the meantime e-bike brands who are interested in participating, and any other stakeholders, are invited to contact us.
E-bike brands listed below have had their safety and quality processes independently audited by the Bicycle Association. Their listing on this Register gives purchasers and users extra assurance that a brand’s safety practices, testing and quality controls, including those related to battery fire safety, have been checked to meet rigorous legal and industry expectations.
When the first batch of brands have been audited, they will be listed here, in a similar format to this Bicycle Association logo and details placeholder:
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Bicycle Association
01/09/2024
PLEASE NOTE: No adverse conclusions should be drawn if a brand is not listed on this register. E-bike brands which do not appear on the list above may potentially be just as safety-oriented as those which are listed. Participation is voluntary, and the audit also takes time to complete, and has an associated cost. If a brand is not listed they may have simply decided not to participate, or may still be awaiting audit.
Q: Are all e-bikes from a brand which is listed guaranteed to be safe?
This audit scheme and register provides assurance that when audited, a brand's quality processes were independently examined and judged to be fit for purpose to produce safe e-bikes, according to legal requirements and industry good practice.
This should give potential customers and users of these bikes a high level of confidence that when used in accordance with the instructions, e-bikes from this brand will be very safe.
Please note that this audit examines the safety and quality processes behind the supply of new e-bikes from the listed brands. So it cannot make any statement about the current safety of (any) used e-bikes. While e-bikes from a listed brand which are used and maintained in accordance with the instructions can be expected to have a long and safe service life, the proper use and maintenance of the e-bike when it is in use is beyond the supplier's control, and must primarily be the e-bike owner's responsibility.
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Q: Can I get a sticker to show e.g. my landlord that my e-bike is from a safe brand?
In the first phase of this scheme there are no stickers or logos available to identify e-bikes from listed brands. All e-bikes from these brands will have labelling which clearly identifes the brand already on them.
We suggest that if e.g. a landlord wishes to be reassured about a particular e-bike brand, you simply provide the link to this register page on the Bicycle Association website, where they can check the register of safety-audited brands for themselves.
We are already looking into how this scheme may develop in future to, for example, reassure landlords and insurers that e-bikes from responsible brands should not have access to premises restricted. We hope to co-design the next phase of the scheme with the insurance industry, so that real progress can be made to lifting restrictions on reputable e-bikes.
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Q: Can e-bike conversion kit brands be listed on the register?
The first phase of this audit and register scheme is intended for brands supplying complete e-bikes. These brands take responsibility for the safety of all aspects of the e-bike, and the checks in the audit process reflect this.
As e-bike conversion kits are components of e-bikes, rather than complete products, their suppliers cannot evidence safety of the final e-bike. For example, a kit could be fitted to a bike which does not have adequate brakes or fork strength. We outline some of the issues around e-bike conversion kits which consumers should be aware of in this BA Guide.
Nonetheless, we recognise that e-bike conversion kits have become established in the UK market, and that when it comes to the specific issue of fire safety, a complete e-bike conversion kit would include the most fire safety relevant components. We are exploring, in dialogue with the UK product safety regulator OPSS, how suppliers of complete e-bike conversion kits might be included in a future phase of this scheme, so that potential customers can be directed towards conversion kit suppliers whose products are as safe as possible.
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Q: I've seen a brand falsely claim to be listed on this register, but they are not in fact listed.
Please contact us! Thank you very much for reporting any misuse of this register.
This web page on the BA website is the only definitive copy of this register.
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Q: I have a concern or complaint about an e-bike from a brand listed on the register - can you take it up with them?
Sorry, no, we cannot enter into any such correspondence.
Please discuss any issues directly with the company concerned, and if that does not result in a satisfactory outcome, we recommend checking this guidance from Citizen's Advice about your rights and options.
