Penalties for Selling Illegal E-Bikes Approved by NYC Council

by Mindy Cohn

After passing a law in September approving a trade-in program for electric bikes, scooters, and lithium-ion batteries, as reported by BoroPark24 here, the NYC Council is also planning to target the venues that sell them as per new legislation passed Wednesday.

The targeted crackdown will make sure there is enforcement of regulations and actual consequences for New York businesses that sell e-bikes and other devices equipped with faulty lithium-ion batteries.

While the law previously outlawed the sales of uncertified e-bikes and electric scooters with faulty batteries and created a trade-in program, penalties to the stores that sell them have been added as well.

The fines for selling uncertified products will also increase to $2,000 for repeat violators.

Additionally, e-bike retailers must post safety information and guidelines in their stores and online retail platforms or risk being fined between $150 and $350 for each violation.

Fires ignited by faulty lithium-ion batteries have increased by more than 20% between 2022 and 2023. According to the Gothamist, the fires caused by lithium-ion batteries killed eight people last year, which is three times the number of people who died in 2022.