London Fire Brigade has urged landlords to spread awareness of the fire risks around unsafe e-bikes and e-scooters after they sparked 206 fires in the capital last year – the highest number ever.

It wants landlord to take practical steps to help reduce the risk, including providing safe places for storage or appropriate charging facilities, and to read the Brigade’s guidance.

In 2025, two people died because of these fires, taking the total number of fatalities in London to five since 2023. The Brigade says they each did not own the e-bike involved, demonstrating the devastating effect these fires can have on those who live with an e-bike or e-scooter user.

Last year, landlords Sofina Begum, 52, and Aminur Rahman, 55, were fined more than £90,000 for safety offences that led to the death of one of their tenants, Mizanur Rahman, in a fire caused by a faulty lithium-ion e-bike battery that was charging in their overcrowded HMO.

Recorded

Between 2017 and 2025, London Fire Brigade recorded 50 e-bike and e-scooter fires in HMOs – seven in the last year – while there were also 56 fires in flats and homes (both rented and owner-occupied).

It says these fires were largely driven by faulty or poorly built products, typically bought online or second-hand. Lithium-ion battery failure, conversion kits and chargers which don’t meet UK safety standards are particularly prone to going up in flames.

Calling

“We’ve been calling for regulation to improve product safety and are thankful for the work already done by the government to help tackle this issue,” a spokesman tells LandlordZONE. “We hope this is done as soon as possible to reduce the number of customers being exposed to dangerous products available for purchase online and ultimately drive down the number of fires.”

It wants to make online marketplaces accountable for the safety of all products sold, and to ensure they are proactively preventing unsafe products being put on their platforms. “We want the regulator to be empowered to take enforcement action for those that don’t meet the standards.”

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