Emergency doctors urge ban on imports of illegal scramblers and quad bikes

Emergency medicine consultants from the Mater Hospital, including Dr Luke Philips, are scheduled to brief the Oireachtas justice committee on the public-safety risks of scrambler motorcycles and e-scooters. Their testimony will cite four fatalities and 59 serious injuries from scrambler incidents recorded from January 2021 to June, noting that two deaths and 15 injuries involved people not riding the vehicles. All injured riders were male, with three-quarters aged 25 or younger, and injuries often involve fractured limbs, spinal damage, and severe brain trauma.

Similar trends of rising limb injuries have been observed with e-scooter cases. The physicians endorse Grace’s Law, which bans scramblers and quad bikes in public spaces, and call for an expanded ban on importing such machines, compulsory vehicle registration, and stronger enforcement of existing road rules and protective-equipment requirements.