Bird scooters: Cincinnati City Councilman says company responsible for damages from misuse

Hannah K. Sparling | Cincinnati Enquirer

Show Caption Hide Caption The Enquirer test drives the new public scooters downtown The Enquirer's intern, Sam, test drives the new public "Bird" scooters downtown.

A few days after a Bird electric scooter collided with pedestrians in a crosswalk, a Cincinnati City Councilman is pushing a motion that would make the scooter company responsible for such incidents.

The rider in that case took off – fleeing the scene on the scooter and leaving one victim injured in the crosswalk.

Councilman David Mann thinks Bird should be on the hook.

“Because otherwise, they don’t have any real incentive to make sure this stuff doesn’t happen,” Mann said. “I’ve been saying to myself, it’s just a matter of time before we have a serious injury.”

Mann’s motion would require Bird to cover damages resulting from misuse of the scooters. That would include riding on sidewalks, running red lights or leaving scooters on their sides, a tripping hazard for pedestrians.

“Bird is a profitmaking activity which has landed here for one purpose, to make money for someone,” Mann wrote in a statement attached to his motion. “Profit is fine, but the damage inflicted by any enterprise must be assumed by the business, not an innocent public."

Bird has already agreed to protect the city from lawsuits pertaining to such misuse, Mann wrote.

“That is fine for the City,” he wrote. “But what about innocent citizens who are injured by Bird customers? What about Bird customers who are unknown because they flee the scene of an accident? What about Bird customers who are known but do not have insurance or assets to cover the damages to their victims?”

Mann plans to circulate the motion among other council members this week to get feedback. His hope is that it will be on the agenda next week, referred to a committee and then quickly adopted as policy.

Scooter crash: Pedestrian sent to urgent care

What are the rules: Cincinnati sets up pilot program for Bird

Bird electric scooters: What you need to know

Bird launched in Cincinnati on July 26. The company will not share data – ridership numbers or even the number of scooters available here – but a spokesperson, who declined to use her name on the record, said earlier this week that the reception has been good.

She issued a statement on Wednesday that did not address Mann's proposal, specifically, but generally reiterated the company's commitment to safety.

"We are constantly evolving our service, and want to work with the City to provide comprehensive rider education and technology tools that encourage the responsible and safe use of our sustainable transportation option," the statement reads.

Nationally, some have warned about the potential threat electric scooters pose to pedestrians. In June, Bloomberg published an article about personal-injury lawyers hunting for scooter cases.

Meanwhile, cities around the Midwest are scrambling to react to Bird’s business model, which gives no advance warning before placing scooters on sidewalks.

In Columbus, the city this week announced new rules for “shared mobility devices,” according to reporting from The Dispatch. The companies have to get a $500 permit plus pay $75 per device.

They must also offer riders a way to pay without using a credit card, share usage and safety data with the city and place some scooters in poorer neighborhoods.

In Indianapolis, the city announced plans to charge scooter companies an upfront fee of $15,000 plus $1 per device per day.

It’s tricky territory, said Steve Magas, a Cincinnati bike attorney. In general, a lessor is not on the hook for a lessee’s wrongs. Car rental companies, for example, “are not liable every time someone renting a car does something stupid."

The city could, however, set up rules that would throw liability back on Bird, Magas said. It could, for example, require Bird to insure each scooter up to a certain amount. Or it could ban the dockless feature, saying Bird has to have stations.

“It shows you the power the city has to regulate what happens in its borders,” Magas said. “They can be as creative as they want in crafting a solution that works for the city.”

Cincinnati set up a pilot program for Bird, but officials were blindsided by the company initially. Emails among city officials show they were not aware ahead of time that Bird was coming and were unsure how to respond.

Interim city manager Patrick Duhaney even asked if he needed to temporarily ban the Birds while the city decided what to do.

Bird’s rules are clear: Ride in the street. Follow traffic laws. You must be 18 or older to scoot.

But it’s equally clear people are flouting those rules, Mann said, and the company seems to be shrugging that off. Mann said he sees daily people riding on the sidewalks, blowing through red lights and going the wrong way down one-way streets.

He’s also not sure the 18-and-up policy is being properly enforced.

“I’m approaching it as a lawyer,” he said. “How can Bird be required to assume serious responsibility that will cause them to take serious steps? I’m all for having fun, but let’s understand that the sidewalks are a shared space.”