A London council is pushing for stricter safety measures for food-delivery riders following a sharp rise in e-bike battery fires across the capital.

Newham Council has called on Mayor Sadiq Khan to introduce a mandatory “food delivery charter” requiring companies such as Uber Eats, Deliveroo and Just Eat to give riders clear guidance on safe, legal and roadworthy e-bike use. The proposed scheme mirrors a charter adopted in Greater Manchester earlier this year.

The move comes as the London Fire Brigade (LFB) reports an alarming increase in incidents involving lithium battery-powered e-bikes and e-scooters. By 29 October, firefighters had tackled 181 such fires across London — nearly 200 in total this year — several of which have been fatal. Six incidents occurred in Newham, a borough that has consistently recorded some of the city’s highest numbers.

According to the council, many local delivery riders rely on e-bikes, with some using illegally modified models or poor-quality batteries purchased cheaply online. These batteries, the LFB warns, frequently involve unsafe chargers, incompatible components and counterfeit products sold by rogue retailers.

“These fires are extremely dangerous, and people need to be warned of the risks,” said Labour councillor Amar Virdee, who oversees community safety. “Illegal batteries are often a fraction of the price of legal ones, and that’s a real problem.”

The call for a charter follows a two-year investigation by Newham Council into e-bike battery safety, carried out with delivery workers and residents living in shared accommodation.

Delivery platforms say they already require riders to use legal, roadworthy vehicles and have indicated they are open to further cooperation.

“We would welcome the opportunity to build on our existing e-bike and road safety practices with an industry-wide charter,” Deliveroo said, adding that it provides road safety guidance to new riders and works with partners to help them access compliant e-bikes.

Uber Eats said safety was a “top priority” and that it is developing additional training on e-bike and battery safety. Just Eat said it regularly reminds couriers about the dangers of illegal modifications and already supports existing safety charters in London and Manchester.

A spokesperson for the mayor said Sadiq Khan was “deeply concerned” about the rising number of fires and is considering extending Transport for London’s motorcycle delivery charter to include e-bikes. They added that City Hall and the LFB continue to press the government for tougher national product standards to prevent unsafe e-bikes and batteries entering the market. Photo by Môsieur J. [version 9.1] from Rouen, FRANCE, Wikimedia commons.