A man whose family died in an e-bike battery fire is backing calls for all political parties to commit to bringing in additional safety laws. Charity Electrical Safety First (ESF) has called for the introduction of independent third-party certification for e-bikes, e-scooters, and their batteries to reduce the risk of substandard batteries entering people’s homes.
Scott Peden, 30, from Cambridge, lost his partner Gemma, 31, and their two young children, Lilly, 8, and Oliver, 4, during a fire last year that was caused by the battery for an e-bike purchased online. Their two dogs also lost their lives in the fire, which left Peden in a coma for a month. He has since been campaigning to raise awareness of the potential dangers.
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He said: “June marks one year since I lost my partner and two children in an e-bike fire at my home last summer and life hasn’t been the same since. I feel like my life has ended and I don’t know how to move on.
“Before the fire, I had no idea about the dangers of these lithium-ion batteries. I bought my battery online and just assumed it would be safe, I never imagined it could be so dangerous. The battery exploded under my stairs, whilst my family was asleep.
"Flames were coming up the stairs like a flamethrower. The fire and smoke filled the house up in seconds. I told them to jump but they couldn’t get out. I’ve lost everything from that one night and my heart has been left broken.
“If my story doesn’t show the desperate need for a change in regulation, then I don’t know what will. I’m urging all the political parties to come together to tackle the issue of e-bike fires so that no one has to go through what I did. My life has been ruined but I can help to save someone else’s.”
ESF has also released a video of Peden recalling the night of the fire.
Lesley Rudd, chief executive of ESF, said: “Right across the country people are dying because of these fires, and people like Scott are left living with the grief and devastation. The status quo is killing people, ruining lives and continues to leave households at risk.
“We are urging all political parties and any future government to tackle this issue urgently. Time is of the essence, and we owe it to those who have lost their lives to ensure we do all we can to prevent further tragedies. Legislation is desperately needed, and it is unconscionable to let the status quo go unchanged.
“All political parties must come together to tackle this issue and we want to work with any future government to address the problem as a priority. They will have the power to save lives and prevent future heartache.”
ESF would like to see rules introduced that would require e-bike batteries to be certified as safe by a third-party organisation. At present, manufacturers can self-declare their devices are safe.
The organisation argues such a move would, "protect good manufacturers, weed out the bad ones and most importantly save lives.”
ESF’s report Battery Breakdown also recommends a ban on ‘universal’ e-bike chargers, the development of a product standard specific to conversion kits, and the introduction of legislation to make online marketplaces take reasonable steps to prevent or delist unbranded and potentially non-compliant conversion kits.
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Last year, 11 people lost their lives to fires involving e-bikes and e-scooters. Sofia Duarte died on New Years Day 2023 at the age of just 21 in a fire believed to have been caused by a converted e-bike’s battery bursting into flames.
Her family has called for stronger legislation on e-bikes and e-scooters to ensure their safe usage with a petition on change.org, which has been backed by the London Fire Brigade.
Family friend Alda Simoes, 46, said: “We are out of time to save our beautiful Sofia and everyone that has passed away like her. But we will do everything in our power to prevent others going through what Sofia's mum, me, family and friends are going through.
“Change needs to happen. There are people dying, what are we waiting for? Sofia’s death must have a purpose. If nothing changes, her death will be in vain.”
On March 21 this year fire crews were called to Sutton Railway Station where an e-bike had burst into flames on a platform.
Sahab Singh, who bought the e-bike from an online marketplace said: “I never had any problems with the e-bike until the day of the fire. I was travelling to work in Crystal Palace. The bike started smoking on the train platform and then burst into flames. I feel lucky that I escaped and no one was injured. It was very scary.”
