Whangārei not affected by issues behind Beam e-scooters ban in Auckland

The issues behind Beam scooters being removed from Auckland’s streets are not relevant in Whangārei as the district council has a different contractual arrangement with the company.

Problems that led to e-scooter company Beam’s contract being cancelled in Auckland are not an issue in Whangārei as the business has a different arrangement with the district council.

Auckland Council cancelled Beam’s e-scooter licence in Auckland on August 27 and gave it until midnight that night to deactivate its fleet. Wellington City Council is also looking into the company’s operation in the capital.

The move followed the Auckland council’s investigation into a whistleblower’s allegation that the firm put hundreds more e-scooters on Auckland streets beyond its operating limit of 1200 (or 1400 including seated models) and manipulated the software used by the council to keep tabs on e-scooter numbers.

The council said it will now refer the matter to the police for further investigation. The Singapore-based Beam disputes the allegations, saying the extra e-scooters were put in place to make up for those that were broken or missing.

Beam e-scooters were introduced to Whangārei in December 2021 in a deal with Whangārei District Council, which was asked if it was looking into the company’s operation here, given concerns raised in Auckland and Wellington.

WDC transportation manager Jeff Devine said its agreement was different than the ones in Auckland and Wellington and did not involve making payments to the council.

“The arrangement with Beam scooters in Auckland and Wellington is that Beam pays the council a small fee for each trip on a scooter used in the town, and council limits the number of scooters that can be used on the roads as there are more than one supplier in their markets,” Devine said.

“The councils are claiming some irregularities in the records of trips used and reported to the councils. Council’s agreement with Beam in Whangārei does not require a fee to be paid to council so the reporting of the use of scooters, although provided, does not require the same level of scrutiny.”

Last June the Northern Advocate reported there had been a more than 400 per cent increase in the number of ACC claims for e-scooter injuries in Whangārei in the 12 months since Beam e-scooters were introduced.

Figures released to the newspaper showed that in the 12 months to November 2022, there were 94 new claims for injuries caused by scooters since the Beam e-scooters were introduced to the city. The new claims had cost ACC $70,873 in treatments, with the costs likely to increase in some cases.

In the 24 months before the e-scooters were introduced, there were 18 new claims to ACC for scooter injuries – at a treatment cost of $15,105.