Rider sentenced after horrific e-scooter crash in Blackpool
Thursday, October 9, 2025
A teenager has appeared in court after his girlfriend was left with life-changing injuries caused by his dangerous riding of an e-scooter.
The 17-year-old boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, appeared at Preston Magistrates Court today (9th October) for sentencing.
To give you some more details about the case, just after midnight on 23rd February 2025, we were called to Whitegate Drive, Blackpool, following reports an e-scooter had collided with an unidentified vehicle.
The rider of the e-scooter was not seriously injured. He tested positive at the scene for having cannabis in his system and was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of drugs, while our investigation into the collision continued.
Those enquiries found that the e-scooter was not road legal, it had no lights illuminated even though it was the middle of the night, was uninsured and the teenage rider had no licence that would allow him to ride such a vehicle.
CCTV enquiries found that just seconds before the collision, the teenage rider had ignored and gone through a traffic light that had already been on red for around five seconds. The unidentified vehicle had approached the junction from Hornby Road, going through a green light at the expected speed.
However, the teenage rider failed to react to the unidentified car – only making an attempt to avoid when it was too late and after his female passenger had let out a scream.
The collision caused both the rider and his passenger to be thrown over the bonnet and roof of the unidentified vehicle, with the victim colliding into metal railings fixed to the pedestrian crossing island.
The female passenger suffered a significant and life-changing head injury, the impact of which is covered by her mother in the statement to the court.
She wrote: “I am providing this statement as my daughter remains in Royal Preston hospital, some eight months after the collision. She has missed a massive part of growing up, gaining independence and life skills required for adulthood. The injuries she sustained have left her both physically and mentally scarred. Although she is coming to the end of her hospital treatment the incident has had life long lasting effects.
“My daughter has the physical scarring on her head where her hair won't grow back to cover them so she will have a visual reminder of the ordeal she has been through every time she looks in the mirror. As a result of the brain injury my daughter suffers with excruciating migraines and headaches which leave her bedridden. This is currently a daily occurrence, and she spends a lot of her days sleeping to get away from the pain. My daughter has scarring on one of her legs from further injuries sustained during the collision. My daughter cannot walk for long periods of time, sometimes requiring wheelchairs and staff at the hospital to assist her. However, this is a massive improvement from where she was eight months ago where we didn’t know if she would live, let alone walk again. My daughter’s grit and determination to get back to a point where she can walk for very short periods has been incredible and is why she has progressed so far.
“Mentally my daughter still isn't in the place she was at prior to the incident. My daughter does not present as the 16-year-old girl she was prior to the collision. She has regressed back a few years with her mental age and she has become more and more frustrated that she is still in hospital, still not well enough to be released and still not understanding of what happened, what went on and fully how she came to be in the position she is.
“As her mum it has been positive to see her setting herself some goals going forward. My daughter has missed her GCSEs due to being in hospital and she is determined to get back into some form of education. She has ambitions of driving, socialising and being able to look after herself without the aid and support of carers and family members. As positive as this is, I can't help think that this is a long, long way off. Although my daughter recovery has come on leaps and bounds there is still a lot that she cannot do unaided or unsupported.”
She continued: “For myself and my family this period has continued to be traumatic and draining. Every day has been emotional. Whether it's the constant travel to hospital appointments and visits, meetings with social services, police and doctors it has been never-ending, and the worry of what life holds for my daughter in the future won't go away.”
“However, we find ourselves in this position because of a collision that should easily have been avoided if the rider had not been on that scooter with my daughter. I just wish that that night had never happened for all involved, but mainly my daughter. She is the one that is going to have to live with the physical and mental scars, and the lack of understanding about what happened for the rest of her life.”
Following enquiries, we charged the rider with causing serious Injury by dangerous driving, driving a motor vehicle with a proportion of a specified controlled drug above the specified limit, driving otherwise than in accordance with a licence and using a motor vehicle on a road without third party insurance. He pleaded guilty to all the offences when he appeared at Preston Magistrates Court earlier this year.
He returned to the same court today where he was given a 12-month Youth Offender Panel referral order and banned from driving for 18 months.
Det Sgt Dan Gunn, from our Serious Collision Investigation Unit, said: “As a result of this collision a teenage girl has been left with life-changing physical and mental injuries, and my thoughts are very much with her and her loved ones.
“The illegal use of e-scooters is often in the news. However, there will be very few cases out there which so powerfully rand emotively reflect the devastation that the illegal and reckless use of e-scooters can have. This case should act as a timely reminder to anyone about the importance of ensuring that you and your e-scooter are fit and safe to be on the road.
“No sentence handed down to the rider of the e-scooter will ever make up for the devastation he has caused to the life of his victim, as eloquently summarised by her mother. However, he will have to live with the consequences of the decisions he made on 23rd February 2025 for the remainder of his life.”
