National safety rules needed to curb e-bike fire risks
National reforms to protect consumers from defective and dangerous electric scooters, bikes and skateboards are urgently needed, an inquiry has found, following a spate of “intense, uncontrollable” fires.
The final report from the NSW inquiry into electric and hybrid vehicle batteries, released on Thursday, also recommended state authorities inspect more of the devices and work with online platforms to ban models that fail to meet safety standards.
The report, which follows hearings in March and April, also found regulations on electric vehicles were adequate, although it recommended further training for emergency workers and a review of building codes.
The findings come after a record number of lithium-ion battery fires were recorded by Fire and Rescue NSW last year, with 272 incidents injuring 38 people.
The inquiry, which heard from fire authorities, insurance and automotive firms, and battery experts, found personal mobility devices (PMDs) such as e-bikes and e-scooters posed a significant fire risk due to defective or non-standard batteries.
Those risks could be magnified, the report found, by poor quality manufacturing, illegal imports, damage or being left on charge.
“(We) heard that batteries in PMDs could pose fire risks if they are overcharged and that poor quality battery management systems … can result in overcharging,” the report said.
“EV FireSafe gave us an example of this occurring in the Philippines where an e-bike caused a fatal fire because the battery management system and cells were poor quality and did not stop charging at 100 per cent.”
The inquiry recommended 10 changes to address the risk of intense and uncontrollable lithium-ion battery fires, including calls for action at a national level.
While the NSW government introduced mandatory safety standards for the devices in August, the inquiry recommended NSW Fair Trading carry out ongoing inspections to ensure compliance and work with online platforms to withdraw non-standard models from sale.
The report also noted the lack of a national standard and “inadequate quality control” at the point of importation, and recommended the NSW government advocate for its standards to be introduced throughout Australia.
Despite finding personal mobility devices posed the greatest fire risk and that electric car fires were “relatively rare,” it also recommended changes to training and a review of building codes.
Emergency service workers had “knowledge gaps in dealing with the hazards and risks of EV battery fires,” the inquiry found, and training should be widely available.
The inquiry also noted there was debate over whether safety regulations for new buildings would mitigate risks from electric vehicle fires, and it recommended the Building Commission NSW work with the Australian Building Codes Board to assess whether current rules were adequate.
A response from the NSW government is due by March.
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