The 4 UK Classes of E-bikes Explained

Did you know there are in fact, 4 classes of electrically assisted bikes here in the UK? Today we will look at these 4 main types and what each class means. Knowing these different classes and the UK laws and regulations that bind them will keep you safe on the road and out of the eyes of the law…

EAPC (Class 1 in the US)

This class stands for “electrically assisted pedal cycles”. No registration is needed, you don’t need insurance, you must be over 14yrs old to ride one and it must not have more power than a 250w motor. These you can ride anywhere you are allowed, including cycle paths, roads and other bicycle-friendly environments. Do be warned that if the e-bike has a throttle (a ‘twist and go’ EAPC) even if you don’t use it the e-bike by law is classed as an S-Pedelec. And yes, it is technically still an S-Pedelec even if it only has 250w of power or less.

S-Pedelec (Class 2 & 3 in the US)

They must be registered with DVLA, you need insurance, you must be over 16 and you must pass the CBT motorcycle and moped training. In short, these are e-bikes that are over 250w, and can come with a throttle

E-Moped (Same in the US)

They must be registered with DVLA, you need insurance, you must be over 16 and you must pass the CBT motorcycle and moped training and it must not go faster than 45 KPH

E-Motorbike (Same in the US)

They must be registered with DVLA, you need insurance, you must be over 17 and you must pass the CBT motorcycle and moped training and it must have the ability to go faster than 45 KPH

I do want to give a shoutout to follow Simon Clark over on Youtube for the infographic we nicked, his video goes much more in-depth and is well worth a watch – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MUShhvNwlN0