New Jersey Extends Licensing, Insurance Mandate to All E-Bikes

In one of his final acts in office, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed legislation into law to expand regulation of motorized bicycles to include all classes of electric bikes.

The measure (S4834/A6235) updates the classification, regulation, licensing, insurance and training requirements for e-bikes.

Notably, all e-bikes are now classified as motorized bicycles, including lower speed e-bikes that have until now been excluded from regulations.

The law calls for regulation of e-bikes with pedals and an electric motor (Class 1) that go up to 15 miles per hour and e-bikes with throttles (Class 2) that go up to 20 miles per hour. Current state law already requires owners of e-bikes that can go faster than 20 mph and up to 28 mph (Class 3) and mopeds to be licensed, registered and insured. The law effectively removes the different classifications and expands the classification of motorized bicycle.

Under the bill, a person must be 17 years of age or older with a valid basic driver’s license issued by the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission to operate a motorized bicycle. A person under the age of 17 may operate a motorized bicycle if the person is at least 15 years of age and has a valid motorized bicycle license.

Under the bill, a person has six months following the bill’s effective date to register, insure, and become licensed to operate a motorized bicycle that was not classified as a motorized bicycle before the bill’s effective date.

The legislation was authored by Senate President Nick Scutari who said he proposed the changes after several high-profile crashes in which a 13-year-old, a 22-year-old, and two teenagers riding e-bikes were hit and killed by motorists.

“The dramatic increase in the use of e-bikes has created greater dangers for their operators, other motorists and pedestrians,” said Scutari. “They are faster, more powerful and far more prevalent. We are in a new era of e-bike use that requires updated safety standards to help prevent accidents, injuries and fatalities. Requiring registration and licensing will improve their safe use and having them insured will protect those injured in accidents.”

Some critics don’t like the expansion of registration and other requirements to all low-speed e-bikes. The New Jersey Bike & Walk Coalition says that at a time when the state should be encouraging wider use of e-bikes as a safe and affordable transportation option, the new requirements will restrict access and burden those who are often the victims in accidents, while not addressing road safety issues.

“Requiring registration and insurance will not meaningfully address roadway fatalities. By focusing on low-speed e-bikes, this bill distracts from the number-one source of over 500 fatalities and 3,000 serious-injury crashes annually in our state: motor vehicles,” the coalition argues.

Since 2019, the state has failed to enforce its requirement that high-speed (>20mph) devices be licensed, registered and insured, according to the group, which has urged the state to focus on that enforcement rather than adding more regulations.

Operators must carry liability and personal injury protection (PIP) insurance on their motorized bicycles, with coverage levels matching those of standard auto insurance, including a $5,000 property damage minimum.

Within hours of the bill’s signing one specialty insurance provider was marketing the availability of insurance for New Jersey operators.

Florida-based Velosurance says its e-bike liability coverage offers limits that “align with the intent of the law,” including protection for bodily injury and property damage claims arising from at-fault incidents.

According to Velosurance, New Jersey has one of the highest rates of bicycle ownership in the country and more than 4,000 miles of trails, making it a key market where cycling, e-bikes, and mixed-use infrastructure increasingly intersect.

Velosurance policies are sold direct to consumers online and through bike shops.

Topics New Jersey