E-bike hire operator Lime hit with over £140,000 in fines for users’ poor parking
Posted on in Business News , Cycles News
Shared e-bike operator Lime has been hit with more than £140,000 in fines after its users were found to be the worst offenders for poor parking in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, with rival operator Forest also facing penalties.
Together, Lime and Forest have racked up more than £210,000 in recovery, storage and release fees since January 2025, after councils seized badly parked bikes and e-scooters left across the borough.
Lime accounted for the largest share of offences, with 1,624 bikes impounded and £143,891 in fines issued, while Forest had 787 bikes removed by council enforcement teams.
Operators Voi and Bolt recorded fewer than 100 offending vehicles each, according to figures reported by Localgov.
The local authority said it has so far recovered more than £179,000 from operators, with the money set to be reinvested into enforcement activity.
The figures come after a Milton Keynes Alderman and Stony Stratford town councillor Paul Bartlett, who had previously called for tougher penalties on operators over poor parking, publicly backed financial sanctions for misplaced hire bikes and scooters.
“Any bike and e scooter not parked in a legal space should result to an immediate penalty to the Operators’ of £1000 per said vehicle,” Bartlett told the Milton Keynes Citizen, adding that it should then be up to operators to recover costs from riders.
Lime has also faced setbacks elsewhere in London, after Richmond upon Thames moved to an exclusive e-bike partnership with Forest, preventing Lime bikes from being parked in the borough.
The decision has prompted a backlash from some residents, with a petition opposing the operator monopoly attracting almost 2,000 signatures.