Insurance When You Ride an E-Scooter or E-Bike

This is chapter 4 of The E-Scooter and E-Bike Injury Guide. Our general guide's chapter on using your own insurance covers these coverages for every kind of crash.

Key points

• No insurance is required to ride a standard e-scooter or e-bike in D.C., Maryland, or Virginia, because none of them treats these devices as motor vehicles.
• Minimum liability limits for drivers are low: $25,000 per person in D.C., $30,000 in Maryland, and $50,000 in Virginia for policies effective on or after January 1, 2025.
• Maryland PIP covers the first named insured and resident family members "injured in any motor vehicle accident," which includes being hit by a car while riding (Md. Code, Ins. § 19-505(a)(1)(i)).
• Virginia MedPay, if you bought it, covers you and resident relatives when struck by a motor vehicle while not occupying one (Va. Code § 38.2-2201(A)).
• Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage on your own or a household member's auto policy can cover a rider hit by a driver with no insurance, too little insurance, or who fled.

Do you need insurance to ride an e-scooter or e-bike?

No, for a device that meets the legal definitions. D.C.'s compulsory insurance law defines "motor vehicle" to exclude personal mobility devices, electric mobility devices, and motorized bicycles (D.C. Code § 31-2402(17)). Maryland excludes electric bicycles and electric low speed scooters from "motor vehicle" (Md. Code, Transp. § 11-135(b)). Virginia deems electric power-assisted bicycles and motorized skateboards or scooters "not to be a motor vehicle" (Va. Code § 46.2-100). The flip side is that the standard auto policy usually does not insure you while riding one, and many homeowners and renters policies exclude motorized devices, with exceptions that vary by policy. Read your own policies before assuming either way.

Does the driver's insurance pay?

Yes, if the driver is legally responsible, up to the driver's liability limits. Those limits are often the legal minimum: $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident in D.C. (D.C. Code § 31-2406(c)); $30,000 per person and $60,000 for two or more people in Maryland (Md. Code, Transp. § 17-103(b)); and $50,000 per person and $100,000 per accident in Virginia for policies effective on or after January 1, 2025 (Va. Code § 46.2-472(B)). D.C.'s minimums are scheduled to rise to $50,000 and $100,000 under D.C. Law 26-155, applying as of October 1, 2027. A serious head injury or fracture can exceed these limits quickly.

Does Maryland PIP cover a scooter or e-bike rider?

Yes, if you or a resident family member has a Maryland auto policy and a motor vehicle was involved. Maryland personal injury protection covers "the first named insured, and any family member of the first named insured who resides in the first named insured's household, who is injured in any motor vehicle accident" (Md. Code, Ins. § 19-505(a)(1)(i)). Being hit by a car while riding is a motor vehicle accident. PIP pays at least $2,500 toward medical bills, 85% of lost income, and essential household services, without regard to fault (§ 19-505(b)), which matters in a contributory negligence state.

If you have no Maryland auto policy in your household, the question is harder. PIP on the car that hit you covers a person injured "as a pedestrian" or "while in, on, or alighting from a vehicle that is operated by animal or muscular power" (§ 19-505(a)(3)). A bicycle fits the second category; a motorized scooter or e-bike is less clearly covered, and insurers may dispute it. A lawyer should make the claim and the argument.

Does D.C. PIP cover a scooter or e-bike rider?

Sometimes. D.C. PIP is optional coverage that insurers must offer, and its benefits are "applicable only to a victim who is an insured or an occupant of the insured's vehicle or of a vehicle which the insured is driving" (D.C. Code § 31-2404(a)(1)). Whether a rider is an "insured" depends on the policy. If you have D.C. PIP, be careful with the 60-day election: electing PIP limits your right to sue the driver unless your injury meets a statutory threshold (D.C. Code § 31-2405). Talk to a lawyer before you sign the election form.

Does Virginia MedPay cover a scooter or e-bike rider?

Yes, if you bought it. Virginia medical expense benefits cover the named insured and resident spouse and relatives "through being struck by a motor vehicle while not occupying a motor vehicle" (Va. Code § 38.2-2201(A)). Because Virginia does not treat a motorized scooter or e-bike as a motor vehicle, a rider struck by a car fits that language, though the policy's own definitions should be checked. The default limit is $2,000 per person unless you and the insurer agreed to another, for expenses within three years; MedPay stacks across up to four vehicles on the same personal policy and may not be reduced because health insurance paid some bills (§ 38.2-2201(A), (C), (D)(6)).

What if the driver had no insurance, too little, or drove away?

Look to uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, which follows the person, not the car. In Virginia, the named insured and resident relatives are insureds "while in a motor vehicle or otherwise," and underinsured coverage is paid without a credit for the at-fault driver's liability coverage unless a named insured elected to reduce it (Va. Code § 38.2-2206(B)). In D.C., every policy on a vehicle registered or principally garaged in the District must include uninsured motorist coverage, including for a driver who cannot be identified, while underinsured coverage is optional (D.C. Code § 31-2406(c-1), (f)). In Maryland, standard uninsured motorist coverage is reduced by what the at-fault driver's insurer pays, while enhanced underinsured motorist coverage, required on new private passenger policies issued on or after July 1, 2024 unless waived in writing, pays without that reduction (Md. Code, Ins. §§ 19-509(g), 19-509.1(c), (h)); see Maryland UM/UIM.

In each jurisdiction, the policy's definitions decide whether a rider is covered off a car, so the policies should be read before anyone accepts the driver's limits. This is often where the real recovery is.

Does the rental company's insurance cover you?

Possibly, but read the terms. D.C. requires each permitted shared-scooter and e-bike operator to carry "liability insurance in an amount not less than $1 million per incident" (D.C. Code § 50-2201.03b). That coverage protects the company against claims for its own negligence; it is not a promise to pay riders. Some companies also offer personal accident or rider liability coverage in some locations, conditioned on the rider's compliance with the terms; Lime's posted terms, for example, say so and add that in some locations the rider's own motor vehicle insurance is primary. Ask the company in writing what coverage applied to your ride.

What about health insurance and liens?

Health insurance pays your medical bills as they come in, and its plan may claim reimbursement from your recovery. Medicare, Medicaid, and employer plans each have their own rules. A lien can take a large share of a settlement if no one challenges it, so we review and negotiate them as part of every case. See medical bills, health insurance, and liens.

• Previous chapter: Rental Scooters and E-Bikes: Waivers, Arbitration, and Ride Data
• Next chapter: Pedestrians Hit by Scooter and E-Bike Riders

Related practice areas

Related reading

• The e-scooter boom in D.C.: injuries and insurance gaps
• Maryland PIP: the no-fault coverage most crash victims forget
• What is uninsured motorist coverage, and do I have it?
• Bicycle Injury Guide: who pays when a cyclist is hurt

Responsible attorneys: Ryan C. Posey and Jacob M. Lebowitz. Posey Lebowitz PLLC, 3221 M Street NW, Washington, DC 20007.