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Dangerous malfunction sees man injured on Lime scooter

A Brisbane man required stitches after the Lime scooter he was riding malfunctioned, sending him flying off.

Jordan Madigan, 26, says it’s the third time it’s happened to him, with the latest incident sending the scooter hurtling back into his heel which required a GP visit.

Lime has since confirmed a glitch is affecting a handful of scooters across the city which locks the front wheel randomly – an issue which has arisen in New Zealand and across the world as well.

“When I came off the scooter, the scooter pivoted on the front wheel and the momentum from the back swung it into my heel,” Mr Madigan told Yahoo News.

He said that he had been treading with caution after two previous incidents which sent him tumbling off the scooter which reaches speeds of 30km/h.

Jordan Madigan ripped open his heel in the accident. Source: Supplied/ Jordan Madigan
Jordan Madigan ripped open his heel in the accident. Source: Supplied/ Jordan Madigan

“The first time it happened I was probably only 70 per cent that it was a glitch, and didn’t just hit a bump, or maybe squeeze the brake. It all happened really fast.”

After checking online, Mr Madigan realised it appeared to be a recurring problem globally.

Despite the wheel locking on him a second time, he thought he’d continue using the scooters as he deemed the chances of it happening a third time slim.

But he was to fall victim to the glitch again on January 21, this time the scooter striking his heel and splitting it open.

Mr Madigan, a land surveyor, said the scooter spun round and struck his heel with force.

“It was really painful,” he said, thinking at the time he was going to be left with severe bruising.

Lime has confirmed there is a global glitch affecting a small percentage of scooters. Source: Getty, file.
Lime has confirmed there is a global glitch affecting a small percentage of scooters. Source: Getty, file.

But it was only until he got home he realised the bloody mess inside his shoe.

“I took off my shoe and saw it was split open,” he recalled.

He headed straight to a medical centre where a doctor stitched his deep wound together.

Mr Madigan disheartened with response

He has since had an X-ray on the injury and multiple trips to his GP since the accident.

He was on antibiotics to avoid infection, while he needed crutches for several days, with costs totalling about $175.

But Mr Madigan became further disgruntled when his injury claim taken up with the company allegedly went untouched for weeks.

After filing the report, he received a generic response days after the accident asking for further details but it was only until Mr Madigan decided to go public with the incident that Lime followed up his claim.

Mr Madigan required several stitches and needed crutches for several days. Source: Supplied/ Jordan Madigan
Mr Madigan required several stitches and needed crutches for several days. Source: Supplied/ Jordan Madigan

“I went through about three forms and then got a message essentially saying I was at the end of a very long queue, and nothing since,” he explained.

He explained after several attempts to make contact he received an email from the global head of support on Sunday to process his claim.

Lime confirms global glitch

A Lime spokesperson told Yahoo News a global issue had occurred, with a small percentage of Brisbane scooters affected.

“We recently became aware of a software issue that may cause the locking mechanism on the front wheel to engage while on a trip,” the spokesperson said.

“While this issue has affected less than 0.0045 per cent of all Lime rides globally, some riders have been injured and any injury is one too many.”

The spokesperson confirmed the company had decommissioned all affected scooters and an investigation was underway working with an independent consulting firm to determine the glitch’s cause.

“We have deployed a firmware update to resolve the wheel locking issue, and have seen a material reduction in the number of incidents reported of this nature since the update rollout.”

The spokesperson was unable to comment on Mr Madigan’s individual claim but confirmed they were in contact with the customer.

While the company’s public liability insurance of over $20million is well above state requirements, the spokesperson ensured users that scooters are “undisputedly a safe form of transportation” – a claim which is backed by research.

Do you know more or have a story tip? Email: y7newsroom@yahoo7.com.au.

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