The clearest safety concern behind reports of e-bike problems is lithium-ion battery fires. Official UK figures document notified incidents, but they do not establish how common fires are among e-bikes, whether the risk is rising, or how the pattern compares across Europe. The evidence also points to broader ownership challenges, including replacement costs, short battery life and hard-to-find parts.
What the latest official fire figures show
The UK Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) recorded 267 notified fires involving e-bikes, e-scooters and other micromobility devices during January–December 2025. Of those, 217 involved e-bikes, and 82 of the e-bike incidents were reported as conversions. The remaining notifications involved 46 e-scooters and four other micromobility devices. The report was last updated on 30 September 2026. OPSS’s 2025 report says 214 of the combined notifications came from London Fire Brigade.
These are reports of incidents, not a measure of the likelihood that an e-bike will catch fire. OPSS collects voluntary notifications from fire and rescue services when investigators consider a consumer product the most probable cause. It warns that the records cannot be used to estimate national incident totals or compare fire-service performance. The regulator states: “Since the procedure is voluntary, not all fire and rescue services notify OPSS of fires involving consumer products.” The dataset is UK-specific; it cannot establish a Europe-wide total or trend.
Reporting has expanded since OPSS relaunched the collection in February 2023, so changes in annual notification counts should not be read as changes in underlying risk. The agency describes the data as management information that may be revised.
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Did the fires happen while the bikes were charging?
Not all reported fires happened during charging. In the combined 267 e-bike and e-scooter incidents, batteries or generators were recorded as the ignition source in 235. Charging status was known in 178 cases: 86 were charging and 92 were not. It was unknown in 89 incidents. Among the 82 reported e-bike conversion fires, 34 occurred during charging. The OPSS report does not supply a count of e-bikes in use or comparable exposure data, so these figures cannot show whether charging, conversions or any other category carries a higher per-bike fire risk.
Why battery and charger compatibility matters
OPSS describes failures involving batteries, chargers and conversion kits. Its laboratory and field research includes abuse-test scenarios involving overcharging and incompatible batteries and chargers. The practical implication is to treat the battery, charger and conversion system as matched equipment—not interchangeable accessories.
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- Buy from reputable sellers and check that the product is suitable for the specific bicycle.
- For a replacement battery or charger, follow the bicycle or component manufacturer’s recommendations; do not assume a generic charger is compatible.
- Get professional help with conversions and repairs rather than improvising wiring or substituting parts.
These steps reduce avoidable compatibility problems, but they are not a guarantee against battery failure. OPSS does not establish that a charger, charging bag or alarm can prevent thermal runaway.
What other e-bike problems are emerging in Europe?
Fire risk is only one concern. A 2024 article from the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA) describes survey and project findings around the practical and environmental costs of e-bike ownership. It cites a survey of more than 13,000 cyclists that surfaced concerns including replacement costs, short battery life, road safety and environmental impacts. The article reports an average battery lifespan of one to three years in the context of the LIFE2M project; that figure should not be treated as a service-life guarantee for every battery or model.
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CINEA also identifies difficulty sourcing spare parts, including batteries, and concerns about raw-material extraction, battery recycling, manufacturing emissions and the energy used for charging. LIFE2M operated in Palermo, L’Aquila and Florence, focusing on technology, charging access and public awareness. These examples point to an ownership and sustainability challenge, not proof that one newly widespread problem affects e-bikes across Europe.
The article provides useful context rather than a Europe-wide safety dataset: it cites a 20% e-bike market increase in 2020 from CONEBI, and reports that 30% of respondents in an Italian survey had considered an e-bike while 3% had bought one. Those figures are historical and survey-specific, not current European ownership or growth rates. CINEA also cites a European Cyclists’ Federation estimate of €6.8 billion per year for the value of being on a bike and easing congestion; that is not an e-bike market value or a safety statistic. CINEA’s 2024 overview discusses these figures and the wider micromobility context.
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What e-bike owners should take away
Battery fires are a real, officially reported hazard, including incidents when products were not charging. But the available UK notifications do not tell an owner the odds of a fire, prove that the risk is increasing, or support a Europe-wide comparison. For day-to-day decisions, use the manufacturer-approved battery and charger for the exact model, and have conversions and repairs handled by someone qualified.
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