Source: fietsberaad.nl

Statistics provided by the German Insurers Accident Research (UDV) indicate that an e-bike is no more dangerous than a regular bicycle in most cases, despite differing opinions.

As e-bike usage in Germany has grown, so has the associated number of accidents. At a glance, it appears the proportion of elderly people involved in e-bike crashes may have increased, but following analysis, this can actually be attributed to a higher proportion of elderly riders using e-bikes. What is striking is that there are relatively more single-vehicle accidents involving e-cyclists and more accidents generally outside of built-up areas.

Of course, the question is whether e-cyclists run a higher risk per kilometer driven. E-cyclists in Germany drive on average 1.8 times as many kilometers per day than regular cyclists. Once the difference in distance is taken into account, it is revealed that the age group 34-74 is not at a higher risk. This applies to involvement in accidents, the cause of accidents, and the outcome (injury or fatality). However, the risk is higher for those between 18-34 years old and to a lesser extent the over-75s. German researchers hypothesize that young people may take more risks while riding and use the pedal assist to ride faster than regular cyclists.

Incidentally, Germany also struggles with incomplete accident figures. The police only register injury crashes and hardly any single-vehicle crashes. Therefore, a research gap is present and further analysis must be considered once data is available.