A BARDWELL Park woman is calling on the Department of Roads and Maritime Services to introduce registration for motorised mobility scooters.
Tina Belogiannis wants the changes after her mother, 82, was struck by a mobility scooter while on a pedestrian crossing five years ago.
She suffered a fractured vertebrae and has had back pain ever since. She is now seeking compensation.
NSW laws state that any device with a motor must be registered for use on a road or road-related area unless specifically exempt.
Motorised wheelchairs and other types of vehicles used by people with disabilities are exempt from registration.
But operators must comply with the same road rules as pedestrians, provided the vehicles are used solely for the conveyance of a person with a disability that substantially impairs the person's mobility and cannot travel at more than 10km/h.
Mrs Belogiannis was prompted to speak out after the Leader reported this month that at least 62 people were killed in the past 10 years in mobility scooter accidents and as many as 700 people were hospitalised in Australia each year.
"My mother has lost her independence since the accident," Mrs Belogiannis, 53, said.
"She used to go to church by herself, the shops by herself and the doctors by herself. Now she needs to be assisted."
Mrs Belogiannis said there needed to be mobility scooter safety training for owners, especially those purchasing their first scooter second hand.
A Monash University study found injuries to the lower limbs and fractures were the most common scooter injuries, while the most likely location of an accident was the road, followed by home.
Of the 62 identified fatalities related to motorised mobility scooters from July 2000 to August 2010, 14 cases were under investigation.
Robyn Chapman, the chief executive of the Independent Living Centre, an organisation that provides advice, expertise, awareness and training in assistive technology, was unable to be contacted by the Leader before press time.
Should mobility scooters be registered?
