In the UK – Ebikes must have a motor restricted to max 250W and can not provide assistance beyond 15.5 mph.
Our company policy is dictated by UK law and manufacturer safety recommendations.
If an ebike doesn’t meet these regulations – either because the motor is more powerful than 250W, or if it assists you when you’re riding more than 15.5 mph – it will need to be registered, insured and taxed as a motor vehicle. In this case, you will also need a driving licence, and you must wear a motorcycle helmet.
These other kind of bikes (called speed pedelecs) cannot be ridden on cycle paths and must be approved by the DVLA. So while it’s easy to de-restrict an ebike to get the motor assisting you with higher speeds, it is not very wise to do so, both for regulatory and safety reasons.
Summit Cycles DO NOT service bikes that are chipped, derestricted or otherwise modified where their modification would take them outside of what can legally be classified in the UK as a bicycle (PEDELEC).
From January 1 2016, the only throttles legal within the UK’s EAPC legislation are those that assist the rider without pedalling up to a maximum speed of 6 km/h (3.7 mph) – i.e. starting/walk assistance only.
If the rider is rolling – but not pedalling – faster than 6km/h, the throttle cuts off. If the cyclist pedals at the same time then the throttle can still assist up to the general limit of 15.5mph.
Summit Cycles DO NOT service bikes with throttles fitted that allow the bike to be propelled unassisted at speeds greater than 3.7 mph as they are not legally classified in the UK as bicycles (PEDELEC).
Almost all aftermarket ebike upgrade kits will invalidate the original manufacturers warranty and are contrary to the intended use of the bicycle. This is a serious risk to the safety of the user and we strongly discourage the fitting of such kits even if they meet legal requirements to be classed under UK law as a bicycle (PEDELEC).
At our discretion we may accept to complete work on any such bikes that can demonstrate that they meet UK Legal requirements. However any such work, if accepted, is carried out without prejudice towards the safety of the modifications that have been carried out. We do not warrant or accept responsibility for any failure, loss or injury resulting from such an installation, or of any work we have subsequently carried out on a bike with this type of modification.
Summit Cycles do not fit aftermarket ebike conversion kits and strongly recommend that our customers do not modify their bicycles in this way. The stresses placed on the bicycle and its components fall outside of safety testing by manufacturers and as such, the safety of both the bicycle and the modification are unpredictable and could be dangerous.