First, get medical care right away—even if you think it's just road rash or soreness. Without a car frame around you, broken wrists, collarbones, concussions, and torn ligaments are common, and under Florida's No-Fault Law (Fla. Stat. § 627.736), you only have 14 days to see a doctor if PIP coverage applies to your crash. Under Fla. Stat. § 316.065, call the police immediately if anyone is hurt or there is at least $500 in damage. Before leaving, photograph the driver's license plate and insurance card, your e-bike or scooter (including the QR code or unit ID), the street or bike lane, and your injuries, and screenshot your rental app trip receipt. Then talk to a Florida e-scooter and e-bike accident lawyer before speaking to the driver's insurance adjuster.

Unlike a regular car crash, e-bikes (Fla. Stat. § 316.20655) and motorized scooters (Fla. Stat. § 316.2128) are not required to carry registration or insurance in Florida, and rental apps do not carry medical coverage for riders hit by cars. Instead, we pursue your recovery from three main sources: (1) the at-fault driver's bodily injury liability policy, (2) Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist (UM) coverage under Fla. Stat. § 627.727 if you or a relative you live with owns an insured car (which is critical in South Florida, where over 20% of drivers are uninsured), and (3) Personal Injury Protection (PIP) benefits under Fla. Stat. § 627.736 when applicable. Because insurers frequently dispute whether a motorized scooter or e-bike qualifies as a "self-propelled vehicle" under Florida's PIP statute, we put every available policy on notice from day one.

Not when a car hits you. While rental operators like Bird, Lime, Spin, Lyft, and Citi Bike Miami carry commercial general liability policies, those policies are designed to protect the company if you hit a pedestrian or if their equipment fails. When a negligent driver hits you, the rental app's user agreement pushes all responsibility away from the app, meaning your claim is against the driver who hit you (and your own household UM/PIP policies). The one exception is when a rental scooter or e-bike malfunctions—such as sudden brake failure, a stuck throttle, or a snapped stem—where the rental company or manufacturer can be held liable for defective equipment.

Under Florida Statute § 316.20655 and § 316.2128, e-bike and scooter riders generally have the same roadway rights and duties as cyclists, but local South Florida cities have passed strict ordinances. In October 2026, the City of Miami banned e-bikes and e-scooters from city sidewalks, set a 20 mph speed limit, and required riders to be at least 16 with a government ID. Miami Beach, Sunny Isles Beach, Aventura, Pinecrest, Doral, and Key Biscayne have their own sidewalk restrictions or speed caps, and Fort Lauderdale has introduced similar rules. Importantly, even if you were riding on a sidewalk, didn't have a helmet, or broke a city ordinance when a driver hit you, you still have a case! Under Florida's modified comparative negligence law (Fla. Stat. § 768.81(6)), breaking a local rule does not give a careless driver a free pass to hit you—you can recover compensation as long as you were 50% or less at fault.

Yes. Rental operators and e-bike manufacturers have a legal duty to maintain safe equipment. If your crash was caused by failed brakes, a locked wheel, a faulty throttle, or an exploding lithium-ion battery, you can pursue a product liability or negligent maintenance claim under Florida law. Because rental user agreements from companies like Bird, Lime, and Lyft bury forced arbitration clauses and liability waivers in their fine print, it is critical to preserve the broken scooter or e-bike (or its unit ID and trip log) and let an attorney challenge those waivers.

If an unmarked construction trench, deep pothole, broken drain grate, or dangerous road defect threw you off your e-bike or scooter, the city, county, or private property owner responsible for maintaining that pavement may be liable. If the road is maintained by a Florida city, county, or state agency (like FDOT or Miami-Dade County), your claim falls under Florida's sovereign immunity law (Fla. Stat. § 768.28), which caps government payouts at $200,000 per person ($300,000 per incident) and requires formal written notice to the agency and the Florida Department of Financial Services. Take photos of the hazard immediately before the city patches it.

Hit-and-runs account for roughly 1 in 4 crashes in South Florida. If the driver took off, two steps matter immediately: first, we canvass nearby businesses, intersections, and traffic cameras within days before video is erased to identify the plate. Second, even if the driver is never found, if you (or a resident family member) carry Uninsured Motorist (UM) coverage on a personal auto policy in Florida, that UM policy steps into the shoes of the hit-and-run driver to pay for your medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering.

Under Florida Statute § 95.11(5)(a), you have two years from the date of the crash to file a negligence lawsuit in Florida (cut in half from four years in 2023). However, waiting even a few weeks can hurt your case: you only have 14 days to see a doctor to preserve potential PIP benefits (Fla. Stat. § 627.736), street camera footage of the driver is often overwritten in days, and rental scooters get picked up and repaired overnight.

You pay nothing out of pocket, and if there is no recovery, you owe us no fees and no costs. Our fee is a agreed percentage of the settlement or judgment we recover for you, and we advance all investigation and case expenses. Your consultation with attorney Alex Senft or Scott Senft is 100% free 24/7.

From our offices in Dania Beach and Boca Raton, Senft Legal represents injured e-bike, electric scooter, and moped riders across Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties—including Miami, Miami Beach, Brickell, Wynwood, Coconut Grove, Coral Gables, Doral, Hialeah, Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood, Pembroke Pines, West Palm Beach, and Delray Beach. Whether you were hit on a personal e-bike, a Citi Bike, or a Bird, Lime, or Lyft scooter, we can connect you with a local doctor and fight for what you're owed.