Hidden cameras show some stores unlocking speed limits on e-bikes, selling e

Hidden cameras show some stores unlocking speed limits on e-bikes, selling e-scooters that go up to 120 km/h

Marketplace visited stores in GTA to see recommended ages and maximum speeds available

Whether it's children cruising down a suburban street, drivers delivering food downtown or a daredevil taking their need for speed to the highway, electric bikes and electric scooters are becoming more common across Canada.

A new hidden camera investigation by Marketplace shows how some stores are selling e-scooters and e-bikes with top speeds much higher than provincial speed limits and with recommended rider ages younger than provincial regulations allow.

Most provincial traffic laws limit e-bikes and e-scooters to 32 kilometres per hour or less. Age restrictions, meanwhile, vary across the country, ranging from 12 to 18. The territories and some provinces have no minimum age to ride.

That means it is mostly up to local police services to enforce these rules at a time when the number of injuries caused by these vehicles is climbing yearly, and public calls are growing for stronger, consistent rules nationwide and better enforcement.

Marketplace visited some of Canada's most well-known big box and specialty shops in the Greater Toronto Area — Amego, Emmo, EZbike, Best Buy, Canadian Tire and Costco — that sell popular brands. The undercover journalists tested how easy it is to find an e-bike or e-scooter that either had a maximum speed or age recommendation contravening Ontario limits.

In Ontario, e-scooter and e-bike riders must be at least 16. E-scooters cannot travel faster than 24 km/h on a flat surface, and e-bikes cannot travel faster than 32 km/h, according to provincial laws.

10 of 12 stores exceeded Ontario limits

Of the 12 stores journalists visited undercover, salespeople at six stores told us or showed us how to bypass built-in speed limits.

While most stores reminded us of Ontario rules, 10 stores sold e-bikes or e-scooters with maximum speeds beyond Ontario limits.

Stores are allowed to sell the e-bikes no matter how fast they go, but Michael Pasquali, founder of the Canadian Electric Bicycle Association (CEBA), says it's "heartbreaking."

"Shops that are selling products that are way beyond the legal limit, they're putting a lot of people in danger."

Seven stores also had e-scooters for sale with manufacturer-recommended rider ages under 16, though some medical experts say e-bikes and e-scooters are too unsafe for anyone under 16.

"It's not just a toy; it's a motorized vehicle," said April Kam, an emergency physician at McMaster Children's Hospital in Hamilton.

"We're seeing kids who are presenting with brain bleeds, with abdominal injuries, solid organ injuries."

Recently released data from the Canadian Institute for Health Information shows 150 people ages 15 and under were hospitalized for falls involving an e-scooter in the 2025-2026 fiscal year across Canada, compared to 54 the year prior. That's an increase of roughly 178 per cent — and reflects a steady year-over-year increase for the last three years.

The number of head injuries related to e-scooters has also increased, from 50 in the 2022-2023 fiscal year to 157 in the 2025-2026 fiscal year. Fractures, dislocations and or muscle and tendon injuries have more than doubled in that same period, with 544 last fiscal year.

The Canadian Paediatric Surveillance Program released its own survey in August and found 10 children have died from using devices like e-scooters and e-bikes in 2025.

Meanwhile, sales for the electric rides have more than quadrupled in Canada since 2019, with roughly 372,000 e-bikes and 76,000 e-scooters sold so far this year, according to Statista.

Marketing to kids 'deceiving' parents, doctor says

The youngest age recommendation the Marketplace journalists found was at Canadian Tire — a Razor e-scooter that hits a maximum speed of 16 km/h and is recommended for children who are eight or older.

"That just boggles my mind. Kids at this age don't necessarily have the developmental ability to maneuver these motorized vehicles," said Kam, who is also president of the Canadian Paediatric Society's emergency medicine section.

"It's very concerning that there's this huge market for selling children these motorized vehicles, essentially, and deceiving the parents and family, marketing them as toys."

Doctor says kids 16 and under shouldn't ride e-bikes, e-scooters

Razor, the manufacturer of that particular e-scooter at Canadian Tire, said in a statement its device meets U.S. safety guidelines that say eight-year-olds can operate slow-moving motorized vehicles.

The company said its e-scooter is safe when properly used, isn't meant to be on public roads and that riders should follow local laws.

In statements to Marketplace, Best Buy, Canadian Tire and Emmo said customers should follow local laws. Best Buy said rules for e-bikes and e-scooters are evolving and that it tries to keep product information updated.

Costco didn't comment on Marketplace's findings.

E-bike stores can modify speed controls

At an EZbike location in Richmond Hill, a salesperson told undercover journalists it sells e-scooters that can reach 120 km/h — a speed that could get you a ticket on most highways.

At other stores, some e-bikes have their speed limited to 32 kilometres, adhering to Ontario's rules. But when asked if they modify vehicles, a salesperson at an Emmo location in Toronto said yes, they could modify a bike to go up to 150 km/h for off-road use.

"That's horrible," said Pasquali, of CEBA, who owns his own e-bike store in Hamilton.

Emmo and the company that operates the Emmo stores Marketplace visited said in a statement that a product's technical capabilities should not be confused with what's allowed on the roads.

But as an employee at an Emmo in Vaughan, Ont., described it: bypassing the speed limiter is "just like a toggle switch."

Passing on that kind of advice is "extremely unethical," Pasquali said.

"If you're showing consumers how to push a button and make it faster or offering to modify it to go faster with the caveat that you keep it off road, well, that's technically right. But most consumers aren't doing that, right?"

A salesperson at an Amego store in North York, Ont., went a step further, unlocking the 32 km/h speed limit in front of undercover journalists and revving the motor, showing the e-bike exceeding the speed limit and saying it could hit a top speed of roughly 50 km/h.

Amego said in a statement it does not offer or perform modifications, and its salesperson likely exaggerated the top speed.

EZbike didn't comment on Marketplace's findings.

Mom wants change after son's devastating injury

Amy Richards, of St. John's, became one of those parents pleading for change after watching her son spend 102 days in the hospital after losing control of his e-scooter.

Jayden King, 14, was riding his e-scooter on a quiet street in May when he hit a speed bump and lost control.

King's mom says he was wearing a helmet at the time of the accident but suffered a traumatic brain injury. He spent 21 days in a coma and had to have part of his skull surgically removed due to brain swelling. Once he's healthier, King will have to undergo another surgery to get the rest of his skull put back in place, Richards said.

Mom wants change after son's devastating e-scooter injury

He learned to walk, talk and eat again but still lives with a long list of issues, including memory loss.

"I can't remember nothing in my whole life," King said. He says there's not a chance he'll ride an e-scooter again.

Newfoundland and Labrador has no rules governing e-bikes or e-scooters, but a spokesperson for Government Services said in a statement that it has consulted the public and is looking at changes to the Highway Traffic Act to include micro-mobility devices.

Richards said it should have happened a long time ago, and no one under 16 should be able to ride one.

"We need to protect our children. That should come first and foremost," she said.

Pasquali says the federal government needs to step in and stop the sale and importation of e-bikes and e-scooters that can be modified with the flick of a switch.

Safety is top priority, federal minister says

Canada's Transport Minister Steven MacKinnon told Marketplace in an interview in late September that he has heard stories of people being injured riding e-bikes and e-scooters, and he wants to talk to his provincial counterparts about how to respond.

Most of the legislation governing e-bikes and e-scooters is provincial, he said, and there is "impetus" for provinces and municipalities to act.

But, MacKinon also said the federal government needs "to absolutely consider what we will do in terms of regulating the safety of those devices."

"We'll always work with safety in mind. Safety is our principal priority."

Bobby Hristova is an award-winning investigative reporter with CBC's Marketplace. He writes The Watchdog, Marketplace's weekly newsletter. He's passionate about investigative work and accountability journalism that drives change — and he believes your story can help others. He worked with CBC Hamilton from 2019 to 2024 and also worked with CBC Toronto's Enterprise Team.