E-Scooter Companies Hit with Lawsuit Alleging Dangerous Design and Marketing Practices

August 12, 2024•Product Liability

E-Scooter Companies Hit with Lawsuit Alleging Dangerous Design and Marketing Practices

Tim Valdez sitting in his electric wheelchair

A new Denver District Court lawsuit filed on behalf of 56-year-old Denver resident Tim Valdez alleges that dangerous design and marketing practices at Lime and its associates resulted in a severe 2022 electric scooter crash. Dormer Harpring, the Denver law firm representing Mr. Valdez, has released the following statement summarizing the allegations of the suit:

In recent years, people have increasingly searched for safe, convenient, environmentally friendly alternatives to cars. In that increasing market demand, companies including Defendants Uber, Lime, JUMP, and Okai have seen an opportunity to make a lot of money, fast. Instead of inventing products that would actually create a balanced and effective solution, these Defendants decided to offer a bigger problem masquerading as a solution: high-wattage electric bicycle motors bolted to toys, illegally dumped into Denver and other cities, and supported by a massive lobbying and marketing effort. These are the products we now know as e-scooters. They’ve caused a massive increase in severe injuries, and their costs have far exceeded their claimed benefits. Under Colorado law, that makes these Defendants liable for the injuries they cause. Instead of accepting any share of responsibility for Mr. Valdez’s injuries, Lime offered Mr. Valdez the “courtesy” of a waiver of his ride fee.

To compound the problem, companies like Uber, Lime, and JUMP have realized they’ll sell more rides if they avoid adding features that encourage safe riding. They’ve decided to capitalize on this realization by placing e-scooters outside bars, avoiding speed limits, and hiding rider weight warnings in places people will never look. Defendants know people make mistakes, they prey on those mistakes, and their profits increase.

The tiny pothole that the Lime Scooter was unable to handle – leading to paralysis from the neck down for Mr. Valdez.

This case is about a severe spinal cord injury that resulted in quadriplegia. This injury was caused by a “Lime Gen4’s” inability to safely roll over a small Denver-standard pothole that no reasonable person—even stone-cold sober—would likely have noticed and avoided. Tim Valdez is the injured person, and we’re proud to be filing this lawsuit on his behalf.

Some very basic evidence related to Mr. Valdez’s lawsuit and inspiring recovery story can be accessed here. For further comment, please contact our Denver, CO Dockless Bike / E-Scooter Accident team by calling 303-756-3812 and asking for Sean Dormer.

E-Scooter Companies Hit with Lawsuit Alleging Dangerous Design and Marketing Practices

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