Mohsen Ansari fell off a Lime scooter on his way to work. Photo / Michael Craig
Mohsen Ansari fell off a Lime scooter on his way to work. Photo / Michael Craig
An Auckland man says he is lucky to only have limited injuries following a nasty crash on an electric scooter earlier this week.
It is the latest incident involving an apparent safety defect in Lime's e-scooter fleet and comes as Auckland Council gives the company until noon tomorrow to provideinformation on safety issues or face the possibility of its scooters being taken off Auckland streets.
Mohsen Ansari was speeding down Parnell Rise on a Lime scooter on Tuesday morning when the front wheel locked up and sent him sprawling forwards.
The 40-year-old managed to land on his feet after jumping over the steering column, taking a few steps then rolling on the ground.
"In the morning I realised I didn't have my HOP card and decided to walk down to find an ATM machine and saw a Lime instead," he told the Herald.
"I was going pretty fast and I was trying to slow down then out of nowhere it just locked up and absolutely shocked and I was sent flying.
"I don't know how but magically I took three or four steps before I fell down and just rolled over quickly … everyone came over to me asking if I was okay."
Auckland Council issued a stern warning to Lime earlier this week. Photo / Jason Oxenham
The ESOL teacher believes years of gymnastics spared him from severe injuries as his movement into a roll was just his reflexes, he said.
Ansari tried to walk off his injury but had horrendous pain in his left knee and was forced to take the day off work and visit the hospital.
Following a series of tests, the doctors revealed they suspected he had ruptured the meniscus in his knee.
"I haven't been to work for three days … at home I'm walking with crutches and looking forward to the day I can walk a bit better," he said.
"It was pretty frightening, having it lock up all of a sudden when you're not expecting that to happen ... it could have been worse and I feel lucky."
Several e-scooter riders in Auckland have been left injured after the Limes they were riding randomly locked up without warning.
Mohsen Ansari says he is lucky not to have been hurt worse. Photo / Michael Craig
Liam Thompson broke his jaw after a similar incident, which saw him fly over the handlebar and slide over the top of concrete last week.
In a statement earlier this week, a spokesperson for Lime said it "recently" became aware of the operational issue affecting certain scooters.
"While the issue is still under investigation, user safety is our first priority and the affected scooters have been removed from circulation," Lime said.
"In the meantime, we are in the process of rolling out early detection and additional preventative measures for our global fleet.
"Lime's public liability insurance is there for riders and the public if something goes wrong."
Meanwhile, Lime has been given until noon tomorrow to provide information on safety issues or face the possibility of its e-scooters being taken off Auckland streets.
In a joint statement issued this morning from Auckland Council and Auckland Transport, council chief operating officer Dean Kimpton said the council bodies have been actively seeking assurances about the faults from Lime this week, with some scooters locking.
"Auckland Council has formally written to Lime twice this week to request urgent updates, for us to be able to decide on any next steps from a licensing perspective."
The council will consider the company's response before making further decisions about its future in Auckland.
The company's operating licence is due to expire at the end of next month.
Lime scooters timeline
• Jan 2017: Founded in San Francisco by Toby Sun and Brad Bao
• March 2017: Sun and Bao raise US$12m from Netscape founder Marc Andreessen
• June 2017: First service launched, in Greensboro, North Carolina, with e-scooters that cost US$1 to unlock then 15c a minute and e-bikes at 5c/minute
• July 2018: Raises US$335m in July 2018 in funding round supported by Google Ventures and Uber and various VCs; enters software partnership with Uber
• Oct 2018: Trial begins in Auckland and Christchurch, with Upper, Lower Hutt and Dunedin later added
• Oct 2018: Lime Pods (cars) launch in Seattle at 30c per minute
• January 2019: Lime says it's hit the millionth ride milestone in NZ. Worldwide, it is now in 100 cites, and valued at around US$2b
