Lime Bike Chaos: 10-Year-Old's Crash Devastates Couple

In early August three years ago, Jane Ouartsi, in her late 60s, suffered devastating injuries after being hit by a young rider on a Lime e-bike in central London. The collision left her with a fractured collar bone, two spinal fractures, and a badly broken femur, requiring extensive hospitalization and rehabilitation. She spent 36 days in hospital and 18 months learning to walk again.

The CCTV footage of the incident, showing a young rider speeding across a pedestrian square, recently gained viral attention. The couple has struggled to get Lime to acknowledge the consequences, with the company stating the bike was stolen and ridden illegally, thus not registered as an active trip. This has prevented any compensation claims.

Ouartsi describes the situation with ebikes as the "wild west" and highlights how medical staff are seeing increasing numbers of e-bike related injuries. She and her partner, Dave Mathias, support the concept of more bikes and fewer cars but insist that e-bike companies must take more responsibility for rider safety and bike management.

Mathias has repeatedly tried to engage Lime, including at a public meeting in October 2024, but has found their promises of support unfulfilled. Similar difficulties were experienced by Robert Goodsell, whose wife Helen was injured by an underage rider. Legal experts note that identifying the rider is crucial for insurance claims, but companies like Lime have faced scrutiny over their practices and the prevalence of underage riders. Data from Transport for London indicates a significant rise in hire bike involvement in cyclist-pedestrian crashes.