Mum calls for mandatory e-scooter helmets after crash leaves son with fractured pelvis and memory loss
A mother in Greymouth is advocating for mandatory e-scooter helmet laws after her son suffered serious injuries in a collision with a vehicle. She credits his helmet with preventing more severe head trauma and is concerned about the lack of safety regulations for young riders.
Why it matters
The rise in e-scooter usage has outpaced current safety regulations, sparking public debate over personal protective equipment requirements.
A Greymouth teen is recovering after a ute hit him on his e-scooter. Photo / 123rf
A collision with a ute while on his e-scooter left her son with a fractured pelvis, internal bleeding and a large bump to his head, but Riana Grobbelaar fears it would have been much worse had he not been wearing a helmet.
Her son, 15, has spent more than a week in hospital after the crash, which happened while he was delivering newspapers in Greymouth on August 29.
“My son delivers papers on the main road, State Highway 6, in the Paroa area. He crosses that main road a few times and the speed goes from 100km/h to 80 so vehicles coming into Paroa area go quite fast.
“He said he was waiting to cross and looked and didn’t see anything, but after that he woke up with a lot of people around him.
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