Do E-Scooters and Hoverboards fall under the EU WEEE?

As our understanding of mobility changes, small electrical and electronic vehicles such as e-scooters and hoverboards are gaining ground. The EU market is a growing business field for producers all over the world. Considering e-scooters and hoverboards need electricity to function, the question that arises is whether they are subject to requirements under the EU-WEEE-directive 2012/19/EU. The fact that the directive stipulates an exclusion for two-wheel vehicles that are “type approved” complicates the situation even more. However, regardless of whether the e-scooter or hoverboard are subject to the WEEE obligations in a specific EU country or not, fact remains that their accumulators are within the scope of the EU Battery Directive 2006/66/EU. At the beginning of 2019, Germany initiated a draft ordinance on the participation of very small electric vehicles in road traffic (eKFV) and that would ultimately permit the licensing of e-scooters with a maximum speed of 12km/h to 20 km/h. However, the draft does not include hoverboards yet; the BMIV is looking into this issue and evaluating their potential licensing. We remain at your disposal to clarify compliance queries you may have in the various EU member states. Please contact us at contact@1cc-consulting.com