SINGAPORE: All motorised personal mobility devices (PMDs) must meet fire safety standards by 2021 to ensure public safety, Senior Minister of State for Transport Lam Pin Min said in Parliament on Monday (Sep 10).

During the second reading of the Land Transport (Enforcement Measure) Bill, Dr Lam said that there have been more than 80 fire incidents involving motorised PMDs since 2016.



"These pose serious public safety concerns," he told the House, adding that many of such devices sold in Singapore do not conform to any reliable safety standard.

Going forward, the Ministry of Transport will use the UL2272 safety standard in its regulation of motorised PMDs in Singapore.

Devices on public paths which are not UL2272 compliant will be illegal from January 2021, said Dr Lam.

For retailers, the Government intends to prohibit them from selling non-compliant motorised PMDs from July 2019.



Existing users of devices which do not meet the standard can continue using them until end-2020. The grace period is to facilitate the introduction of UL2272 as a technical standard, said Dr Lam.

He added that the standard, developed by an independent US certification company, can "significantly improve" the safety of motorised PMDs against fire and electrical hazards.

Dr Lam said the Ministry of Transport strongly encourages owners of motorised PMDs to switch to UL2272-compliant devices as soon as possible in order to minimise the risk of their devices catching fire.

"When purchasing PMDs, consumers should try to buy from reputable sources and look out for fire safety standards. Consumers should also avoid overcharging batteries, modifying their PMDs or tampering with the electrical components of the PMDs," he added.

