Retailer fined S$750 for displaying 3 non-compliant e-scooters, in first such prosecution

SINGAPORE — A retailer that displayed three non-compliant electric scooters on its premises at 160 Paya Lebar Road was sentenced to a S$750 fine on Thursday (Aug 15).

The manager of Ning Pte Ltd, Mr Chew Tat Weng, pleaded guilty on behalf of the company to one charge of failing to ensure that no customers or members of the public could see non-compliant personal mobility devices (PMDs) from the inside of its premises.

The charge carries a maximum fine of S$1,000, or jail time of up to three months, or both.

This is the first prosecution of a retailer under the Active Mobility Act 2017, coming a month after a man became the first in Singapore to be dealt with over riding a non-compliant PMD. Loh Izel Feizal was fined S$600 on July 16 for riding an e-scooter that was 6cm wider than the prescribed 70cm limit on a public path.

The court heard on Thursday that Ning printed brochures and posted video advertisements online for the sale of PMDs at their “showroom service centre”.

Further checks with the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority revealed that Ning was registered to sell sports apparel and equipment, including bicycles, the court heard.

When an enforcement officer from the Land Transport Authority (LTA) conducted an operation on July 9, he spotted five PMDs displayed prominently on the left of the premises.

Three of them were not registered, and further checks revealed that they were not UL2272-certified. UL2272 is a safety standard that will reduce the risk of fires.

‘REAL AND POTENTIAL DANGERS’

In meting out the fine to Ning, District Judge Lorraine Ho said that unknowing customers could choose to procure such devices from irresponsible retailers, which poses “real and potential dangers”.

“This is especially given the number of reported incidents… they have destroyed not only residential properties, but caused physical harm to others,” the judge added.

In his mitigation plea, Mr Chew said that Ning’s main business was not selling PMDs; it now sells beauty products.

Mr Chew also repeatedly claimed that the firm had stopped selling or promoting the non-compliant devices since June, and was trying to “give them away” before new regulations kicked in on July 1.

When the judge pointed out that the company advertised the PMDs online and in brochures, he replied that it was “an old website” and that it had forgotten to take down the advertisements.

Since July 1, retailers and other operators have been barred from selling or leasing any non-UL2272 certified PMDs.

Seeking a fine of at least S$800, LTA prosecutor Ng Jun Kai argued that the authorities had made extensive announcements — through the media and various online platforms — on the need for PMDs to be UL2272-certified.

The LTA had also contacted Ning in September and December last year to “highlight and educate them” on the requirements.

“At least seven months of grace period was catered for businesses to have their current fleet of PMDs be rectified accordingly. However, Ning Pte Ltd had blatantly continued displaying non-compliant PMDs when enforcement officers from LTA paid a visit to the premises,” the prosecutor added.

Earlier this month, Senior Minister of State for Transport Lam Pin Min gave a ministerial statement on PMDs. He noted that 49 PMD-related fires happened in the first half of this year — in comparison to only 52 over the whole of last year.

In order to curb the rash of fires, the authorities are bringing forward the deadline for all vehicles to meet UL2272 by six months, and making it mandatory for registered e-scooters to be inspected from April next year.

On that note, Mr Ng pointed out that the fires may have been caused by electrical anomalies related to circuitry or batteries.

“This is the risk that the implementation of UL2272 wishes to mitigate. Ning, by displaying non-compliant PMDs, not only pose a fire safety hazard on their own premises, but also run the risk of destroying homes or lives when such devices are sold to and used by unsuspecting customers,” he added.