Is That Even Legal?
Is That Even Legal?
E-Bikes, Kids, And The Law
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A quiet neighborhood, and a pack of teens flying past on throttles—what looks like summer freedom is colliding with a fast-changing legal reality. We unpack the e-bike surge with criminal defense attorney Russ Richelsoph, cutting through confusion about what’s truly an e-bike, what’s an electric motorcycle, and how cities are drawing lines on speed, sidewalks, and rider age. If you’ve wondered whether that “bike” needs a license, plates, or insurance, or why hospitals are seeing daily injuries from these crashes, this conversation lays out the stakes with clarity and real-world examples.
We break down the three-class system many states use—Class 1 and 2 capped at 20 mph, Class 3 at 28 mph—and explain why machines like Surron-style electrics are often not e-bikes under Arizona law. Rust walks us through where kids can legally ride, from sidewalk rules that change by city to local helmet mandates for minors. We also talk enforcement: officers checking factory class stickers, issuing citations, and even impounding unlawful bikes. The safety angle is stark—20 mph is advanced cycling speed, especially for distracted teens sharing narrow sidewalks with pedestrians and driveways with turning cars.
For parents, the hidden risk is civil liability. If a child injures someone, attorneys may target the adult who bought the machine, arguing negligent entrustment. We outline practical steps to reduce danger and exposure: verify the bike’s legal class and top speed, learn your city’s code, require helmets and lights, teach right-way riding and stopping, and call your insurance agent to confirm coverage under homeowners, renters, auto, or umbrella policies. Smart boundaries and the right gear keep the ride fun, safe, and firmly on the right side of the law.
If this helped you navigate the e-bike maze, subscribe, leave a review, and share the episode with a friend who’s shopping for a “bike” that might be a motorcycle. What rules does your city enforce, and do you think teens should need training before riding? We’d love to hear your take.
Is that even legal? It's a question we ask ourselves on a daily basis. We ask it about our neighbors. We ask it about our elected officials. We ask it about our family. And sometimes we ask it to ourselves. The law is complex and it impacts everyone all the time. And that's why we are here. I'm Attorney Bob Sewell, and this is season five of the Worldwide Podcast that explores that one burning question: is that even legal? Let's go. Today's guest on the show is Russ Richelsoph. Russ, welcome to the show. Hey Bob, how are you doing? Good. You know, I've had you on before, and you're an excellent criminal defense attorney, and you have a lot of great things to say about our constitutional rights. I'm going to talk to you about something that might sound trivial, but is a huge deal to a lot of people. The nuttiness that is the e-bike revolution. You ready?
Russ Richelsoph:I'm ready. You know, I was actually uh in court earlier this week and I ran into a juvenile probation officer I'm friends with, and she told me that she is inundated with juveniles on e-bike cases. So yeah, it's a very real problem.
Bob Sewell:It is a problem. I mean, it it's a safety issue. I mean, it sounds well, in my town, it is nuts. These e-bikers, these young kids out mostly teens and preteens, they're out running wild on these e-bikes. And it's such a problem. The town has been hunting down the e-bikers, I kid you not, with drones. They bought drones so they could chase the e-bikers and they videotape them doing their nutty stuff. And one day I'm driving back from is a Friday or Saturday night. I'm driving back from the grocery store, it's two miles away, and I count four cop cars pulling over e-bikers. And my wife works in a children's hospital, and the um, and I'm telling her about the scene that I'm seeing, which is e-biker pulling over, you know, cop pulling over three or four e-bikers here, and the next cops pulling over three or four e-bikers there, and you know, four different scenes in two miles. So who knows how many else were out there? And I'm talking to her and I'm like, this is just crazy. They're e-bikers, right? And she says, Oh, no, no, no, no, no. Uh every single, almost every single day, I see um e-bikers come in in the emergency room. They're just they they they crash and they crash into people, the people crash into them, cars crash into them. They're not wearing helmets 90% of the time. Um and they they crash, they they're they're not particularly skilled in their bikes and they're going fast. They can't control it and they crash. So problem.
Russ Richelsoph:Yeah, it's it's unfortunately turning into a huge problem. And uh the states and the cities are still trying to figure out how to how to deal with it.
Bob Sewell:So what is it? Are we um is it legal to ride an e-bike?
Russ Richelsoph:That depends. So I I think you know, the first thing that we need to talk about is what is an e-bike. Um I've I've had situations where I've had clients who've gotten into trouble because they thought they were riding an e-bike, and in fact, they were riding what would be considered an electric motorcycle under state law. And if you're riding an electric motorcycle, you need a driver's license, you need insurance. Um, so and you know, you need all of the things that go along with riding uh a motorcycle. It's gotta be registered, gotta pay that tax. It's gotta have license plates. If you're driving it on the street, it's it's gotta be uh, you know, and it's it's not an e-bike, it's it's gotta be registered and insured, and just like any legal vehicle on the road. Um, so that's a huge problem.
Bob Sewell:Um how do I know? How do I know the difference between my regular e-bike? I mean, I got an e-bike. I mean it it's got pedals, I sit up, it's got a basket on front. It's a very macho e-bike, though. Very macho basket. Yeah. How do I know if it's an e-bike or something else?
Russ Richelsoph:Probably the easiest way to tell is if it will go faster than 28 miles per hour, it's not an e-bike
Speaker 1:under Arizona law. That's that's probably the easiest way to tell. Um in Arizona, so e-bikes in the United States are classified under three classes, and Arizona pretty much follows these classes. There's the class one and class two e-bikes that have a maximum speed of 20 miles an hour. Um, and then there's a class three e-bike, which has a maximum speed of 28 miles an hour. Um, the class one e-bike is has pedals only, it's a pedal assist bike. A class two e-bike has pedals and a throttle. Um, a class three e-bike can have pedals um and a throttle as well. Um and there's there's different rules. So, for example, in some of the cities, like for example, in um Gilbert and Chandler, you can ride a class one e-bike on the sidewalk, um, but you can't ride a class three e-bike on the sidewalk. Um, in Tempe, um it can be ridden, uh an e-bike can be ridden on the sidewalk if only in certain circumstances. So if the road speed, if there's no dedicated bike lane and the speed limit on the road is greater than 25 miles an hour, but the motor has to be turned off if you're riding on the sidewalk in Tempe. So um different cities are doing different things, and there's currently no universal rule across the street of Arizona. So I would encourage anybody who is riding an e-bike or is purchasing an e-bike for their kid to check their local rules and make sure that they know what the local rules are when they're buying the e-bike.
Russ Richelsoph:So they know and their kids know um what they're allowed to do with the e-bike and what they're not allowed to do with the e-bike.
Bob Sewell:You know, this is it sounds crazy from if you're not a cyclist, all these regulations sound a little nuts, I'll be honest. But cyclists know and understand. You and I are both avid cyclists. We like to get out and ride our bikes, um or our bicycles. Um, if you're going, if a kid is going 14, 12, 14 miles an hour on their little cruiser or their dirt bike or their 24-inch tire mountain bike, just your average everyday bike, that's moving for a kid. That's pretty fast. That's that there that kid is pushing hard, right? You if you are getting above 18 on a regular basis, above 18 miles an hour, that 20 plus range, you know, you are really fast. You're a fast cyclist. And you know, the pros are are out there like 24, 25. They're the pros.
Russ Richelsoph:Yeah, they're riding expensive carbon fiber racing bikes, right?
Bob Sewell:And you know, they'll go 100 you know 50 to 100 miles, you know, averaging 24 to 28, somewhere. I'm gonna, I'm gonna guess, I can't remember exactly, but those are the those are pros. They know what they're doing, they're on their cycles all the time, they still have crashes. These things are going 20 miles an hour and more. So if you have some kid and you know what it was like being a kid, and when you were out riding a bike as a kid, you sucked at it. If you have some kid on a sidewalk where where there are obstacles like other humans, doing 20 miles an hour, you got an issue. It's unsafe.
Russ Richelsoph:I would I would say it's at 20 miles an hour, it's gonna be difficult for, you know, especially uh, and and it's usually not when I say teenagers, um, you know, talking to this juvenile probation officer is a friend of mine. She's she's saying it's not 16 and 17-year-olds on these e-bikes who are getting into trouble. It's 12-year-olds, 13-year-olds, 14-year-olds, and 15-year-olds. I mean, essentially, these e-bikes are being used as a you know, stand-in for a car, you know, when the kids are too young to drive a car. And it's going to be tough. I mean, going 20 miles an hour on a skinny sidewalk, it's going to be difficult for anybody to, you know, yield to pedestrians, and especially a teenager who's distracted and busy, you know, socializing with their friends and isn't paying attention. Um, it, you know, it's an opportunity for a lot of dangerous uh situations.
Bob Sewell:Okay. So I get beyond into the motorcycle range. I see the these are the kids who that these are the bikes I'm seeing, the quote unquote bikes I'm seeing a lot in the neighborhood. They don't even look like they have pedals, but they they're talking about them like they're bikes. I think they get they got they call them the Surron or some of them. What am I dealing with here? Am I dealing with a bicycle really, truly?
Russ Richelsoph:No, so the Surrons and and bikes like them are not um e-bikes under Arizona law. Essentially, that that's something like an electric dirt bike. Um, and those you actually can't operate those on the roadway, you know, unless they're registered and they have a license plate and and the rider has a driver's license with the motorcycle, you know, the M designation for um motorcycles. So um those are not e-bikes as at all. And I've had parents um say, oh, it's an e-bike, um, but it's it doesn't meet the Arizona's definition of an e-bike. And um the the bikes are supposed to have stickers on them. And this is something to be it's important to be aware of this because a lot of the police officers now are looking at there's a sticker on the bike that designates whether it's a class one, class two, or class three e-bike. The police officers also know that something like a Surron is not an e-bike and it's not legal uh to ride those on the roadway. Um so the police are are learning this, they're getting more sophisticated with it, and they will um they will cite people who are riding these you know bikes unlawfully on the roadway, and they will seize, meaning that they will call a tow truck and put the e-bike on a tow truck and cart it to an impound lot for somebody to uh you know have to pay to get it out of the impound, usually a parent. Um, and there's ex you know, there's expense with all of that.
Bob Sewell:Yeah, what what what gets me though? If I want to go buy a Surron, okay, I've looked it up. I'm not ashamed to admit it. I've seen these songs online, they're really expensive, super powerful. Um they advertise them as an e-bike. There's no pedals, but they're advertised as e-bikes. Um what do we, you know, what what do we do as a parent about that? I mean, is is it just beware your kid's gonna get arrested?
Russ Richelsoph:Or yeah, so if if if you're buying your your kid um, you know, what's essentially an e-dirt, I'll call it an e-dirt bike, um, and they're driving it on the roadway, just like if your child was driving a gas-powered dirt bike on the roadway, um, you know, they are going to be subject to, you know, being stopped by police. They could be cited for, you know, driving without a license. Um, they could receive a an a citation for underage driving. And that could affect their ability to get a driver's license when they turn 16. So it might delay their eligibility to get a driver's license if they're caught driving one of these, you know, non-e-bikes, you know, these e-motorcycles on the road before they're old enough to do so. Okay.
Bob Sewell:E-bikes. We'll talk about them a little bit. Class one, how old do I have to be? Can I anyone ride a class run? Or is it is it some sort of limitation on that?
Russ Richelsoph:So it depends. Um, and again, this is mostly regulated by the cities at this point. So the state state law hasn't addressed this issue yet. For um Phoenix and Scottsdale. Um, Phoenix and Scottsdale both require riders of class three e-bikes. That's the e-bike that's capable of going 28 miles per hour, require them to be 16 or older. Glendale requires riders of class one and two e-bikes to be 14 or older, and class three e-bikes to be 16 or older. Um, so I I would say front the only way that parents are gonna figure this out is to get online, go to your city's website. Um, most of the cities now have a website that has the rules with regards to e-bikes in in the community, and you're gonna have to learn the specific rules for your specific city. Um, you know, and if you live in a border area, so if you're, you know, if you're in Gilbert, but you live close to Mesa or you're in Chandler and you live close to Gilbert, um, you're gonna need to be aware of the rules for both of those cities so that you can ensure that your child is in compliance in both of those places.
Bob Sewell:That's interesting. That's that seems like a bit of a hassle. What's interesting is it's not just Arizona that is dealing with these with how to deal with it. It's Hawaii. I've a lot of controversy about e-bikes in Hawaii, and you can understand why. The tourists come to town and they they want to ride all over the island on these e-bikes. It's it's California, and the same thing there. They they have the issues with with uh tourism and people riding the bikes and then their own local population. So we're seeing more and more of these regulations.
Russ Richelsoph:Yeah, I mean, this is a this is a problem that communities nationwide are trying to figure out and trying to come up with solutions for so should we be having mandatory helmet laws? Um that's you know, different people have different philosophies about the role of government in your life. Um, some of the cities have mandated helmets for riders under 18. So for example, um Glendale and Tempe both require riders under the age of 18 to wear helmets. Um Phoenix and Gilbert are talking about it. Um, but under Arizona law, there's no requirement yet. So again, the state hasn't weighed in on this issue. Um, and the cities are trying to address it with city code. So it again, it just depends on which city you live in. If you're in in Gilbert, or if you're in sorry, in Glendale or Tempe, your kid needs to be wearing a helmet. Um, if you're in other cities, um, your child might need to wear a helmet. You just need to check the rules. In my opinion, you know, I mountain bike, I always wear a helmet when I'm on my mountain bike. Um, I would recommend wearing a helmet. It's it's a simple and easy thing to do, and um, it'll prevent you know catastrophic injuries um to a part of your body that if it gets damaged, there's no fixing it.
Bob Sewell:Oh, yeah. I we, you know, I I'm I'm right with you. I wear the helmet, and there are times, you know, when I'm going up the hill, I'm barely moving, but when I'm coming down that hill, right? It's a different story. And uh we're reaching some pretty intense speeds, and there are obstacles, and so yeah, it's um I I think I personally think, and I want you to weigh in on this. I personally think 20 miles an hour is too fast for these young kids. I just the vast majority just don't have the skills to drive to ride a bike 20 miles an hour um around the neighborhoods. I mean, when you're a kid, you are all over the place. You're looking here, you're looking there, the the bike swerves in and around. It you know, that that's just the way it is when you ride and learn to ride a bike. And tell me, would you why not? Do you think that's a good idea? Do we have training for bikes? Do we say, hey, if you're XYZ age, you don't get to ride these bikes unless you have this certificate?
Russ Richelsoph:I definitely think, and and I don't know, this is something I don't know if the cities are doing or not, if if the cities or the police departments are putting on any trainings for, you know, teenagers who are riding e-bikes. Um, you know, we live, you know, the thing about our community is we live in a relatively flat place. Um there's mountain, there's there's mountains around us, but most of the houses are built in in the flat part. You know, we live in a valley and the mountains surround the valley, but you know, the city is in the flat part of the valley. We we don't really have hills here. Um personally myself, I think the kids should be pedaling. I think the exercise is good for them. Uh, especially, you know, I'm an old man and I'm out pedaling my bike, you know, manually myself, you know, powered by cliff bars and and uh stingerf waffles, some caffeine. So if I can do it, um, you know, these these young teenagers definitely can. Um, I I just I understand that it's the the hot item, and you know, all the cool kids are riding e-bikes, but um I just I would want my kids out, you know, peddling the bike and and getting some exercise. So I don't know, maybe I'm like a grumpy old man, but um, you know, get out there and get some exercise, kids. You don't you don't need an e-bike, especially one that just has a throttle that you know you're gonna zoom around on on a little motorbike. Um, yeah, I I do think some training uh is good. You know, there's a reason why you know the driving age in Arizona is you know, 16. You can't start driving a car till you're 16 because you know, we've determined that you know this is the age. Age when an individual is able to take the responsibility of driving and operating a vehicle that's going, you know, that fast. You know, pay attention, learn the rules of the road, you know, not drive the wrong way, stop at stop signs, things like that. Um you know, 13 and 14-year-olds just aren't doing those kinds of things. You know, I see, you know, 13, 14-year-olds on these e-bikes and they're they're driving the wrong way. Um, they're in places where you know cars aren't looking. You know, the drivers of cars aren't looking because if you're coming down the wrong side of the street and a driver is making a right turn, they're looking to the left. They're not looking, they're not watching for vehicles on the right. Um, so you get a kid on an e-bike coming the wrong way, and it's really easy for them to get hit. Um, I see a lot of these kids out at night without any lights on the bike, so you can't see them. They're wearing dark clothing, they're not wearing helmets. Um, so um I I just think it's it's uh again, I understand the allure of the e-bike. Um, they're fun, but I just think that the opportunity for injuries, um, the opportunity opportunity for motor vehicle accidents um is is really big. And you know, as a parent, you you can be held liable, especially if you're the one who purchased the e-bike for the kid. Um, you could end up being liable for any you know injuries that your child causes. Uh wait, hold on, hold on. I mean civilly liable.
Bob Sewell:Hold on that. This is something. So I buy little Johnny, my 14-year-old, my non-existent 14-year-old, an e-bike, and he buzzes down the street and runs into my the 10-year-old down the street. I could be liable.
Russ Richelsoph:Yeah, so there's there's no point in suing uh a 14-year-old. 14-year-olds don't tend to have any assets. You know, you can sue you know, attorneys understand this, our clients um come into the office, don't always understand this, but you can sue anybody for anything. Um, and quite frankly, the lawsuit is is actually oftentimes the easy part. Um, the hard part is after you win the lawsuit collecting, who is it gonna be easier to collect on? Some 14-year-old who gets a $10 a week allowance or his parents. So, you know, what's gonna happen is if if you buy your child an e-bike, and only you know, you're the only one who's gonna really buy your child an e-bike unless it's the grandparents or something. But whatever adult buys that child an e-bike, any personal injury attorney who's looking to sue somebody is not gonna be very interested in suing a 14-year-old. They're gonna they're gonna question who purchased the e-bike, who provided the e-bike to this child. And what they're gonna argue is that the the parent, the grandparent, the adult who purchased this e-bike was negligent in purchasing the e-bike for this child. That that's what, and you know, they're gonna go after the the adult. And this is something that may or may not be covered by your homeowners uh or renter's insurance policy. Um that's interesting.
Bob Sewell:So I should be I should be checking on that if I'm you know, if I if I if I'm willing to run the risk, and I mean, look, I see the same kids over and over and over again doing wheelies down my street. So the parents know which kids are the most reckless, right? They're usually it's usually when I'm out with my daughter and they're trying to impress my daughter, by the way.
Russ Richelsoph:So but and and how impressed is your daughter with uh teenage a wheelie, yeah. Yeah, other teenage boys are impressed, but the the girls could care less.
Bob Sewell:Exactly. But I mean, they should be checking their homeowner's policy.
Russ Richelsoph:This covered, they they should be checking their homeowner's policy, they should be checking their auto policies, and if you have an umbrella policy, you should be checking that too, and making sure that your you know, juvenile, your child riding an e-bike is going to be covered by the policy.
Bob Sewell:All right, Russ, thanks for coming on the show. This is important stuff. It it's it seems trivial at from the outset until you start to look at the amount of people who are injured and are coming into the hospitals every day. And that's not an exaggeration. Every day uh they're being injured and they're out there. And and it wasn't happening when people were under pedal power, regular pedal power. So all right, thanks for coming on the show. All right, good talking to you, Bob. Thanks for listening to the podcast. Is That Even Legal is now listened to in a hundred countries and available on virtually all podcast platforms. Leave us a review, send us some show ideas, and do so at producer@ evenlegal.com. Don't forget, as smart as we sound and as lovable as we are, we are not your lawyers. And we are not giving you legal advice. But if you need some legal advice, get stuck. There's some great lawyers out there, and we are always ready to help. See you next time.