The Investigative Committee for Chelyabinsk Oblast has initiated a criminal case against a kicksharing operator after two teenagers on a scooter hit a female pedestrian. According to the press service of the regional Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee, the case was opened under Part 1 of Article 238 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation – provision of services that do not meet safety requirements.
According to preliminary data, the minors were riding a rented scooter at high speed on Molodogvardeytsev Street. After the collision, they left the scene, and the victim sustained injuries. The investigator is currently performing a series of initial procedural actions, reconstructing the entire chain of events.
This is the first precedent in the region where criminal liability has been shifted from a specific personal mobility device (PMD) driver to the rental operator. Earlier, on April 23, the authorities of Chelyabinsk Oblast announced stricter regulation of personal mobility devices: developers were obliged to provide infrastructure for the movement and parking of scooters in new residential areas, but a complete ban on PMDs was rejected.