Can I deliver on an electric scooter?

Not a stand-up e-scooter. Privately owned e-scooters cannot legally be ridden on UK roads, and Deliveroo says you cannot use one. A moped-style scooter with a licence and insurance is different.

By JoltMilePublished 29/09/2026

Last checked 29/09/2026.

No, not the stand-up kind. A privately owned electric scooter cannot legally be used on public roads or pavements in the UK, outside the rental trial schemes, and those rental schemes do not allow commercial delivery. Deliveroo says plainly that you cannot use one for orders.

Two things that are allowed and often confused with it:

  • A moped or motor scooter, petrol or electric, registered and taxed, ridden with a licence, or a provisional licence and CBT, and insured for food delivery.
  • An e-bike that meets the electrically assisted pedal cycle rules: pedals, and power that cuts out at 15.5mph. It counts as a bicycle, so no licence or insurance is legally required. Delivery apps notice speeds too high for a legal e-bike and ask questions.

For tax, a moped or motorbike is claimed at 24p a mile and a bicycle or legal e-bike at 20p, with no threshold for either.

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