Other changes, also not yet<\/p>\n
A ban on people aged 16 to 18 using e-scooters is also not in place yet, but is expected soon after the Minister for Transport told RTE that the EU gave Ireland the green light for the move.<\/p>\n
Separately, all e-scooters must also follow the device-related regulations set in 2024 (see link at end of article). For those that do not, the Department said fees for storing seized e-scooters will double, rising to \u20ac80 for the first day of storage and \u20ac30 for each additional day. This will take effect from 2nd October.<\/p>\n
Helmet requirements details<\/p>\n
In the new regulations, which came into force yesterday, a helmet is defined basically as a bicycle helmet which follows the European standard EN 1078:2012+A1:2012. It must have a CE mark to show it complies with EU health, safety, and environmental protection standards.<\/p>\n
The law now states a person \u201cshall not\u201d (which means must not) use an electric scooter \u201cunless he or she is wearing\u2026\u201d a helmet of the above standard and it must be \u201csecurely fastened to his or her head\u201d.<\/p>\n
High-vis requirements details<\/p>\n
The high-vis requirement is also to have a CE mark and to follow European Standard EN ISO 20471:2013+A1:2016<\/p>\n
For high-vis, the requirement is \u201chigh visibility clothing which covers at least the front and back of the person\u2019s torso\u201d \u2014 this basically means a high-vis vest is a must, and anything of the same or equivalent, such as a high-vis T-shirt, jumper, or jacket, also meets the requirement. <\/p>\n
For vests or other clothing to meet the standard, items must be fluorescent yellow, orange, or red and have retroreflective tape or strips. <\/p>\n
High-vis arm coverings or trousers\u00a0are not required, but harnesses such as hi-vis versions of Sam Browne belts do not meet the requirements. <\/p>\n
Rushed with warnings<\/p>\n The above is not legal advice, but it is being provided as these regulations have been rushed, and very little information so far has been provided by the Department of Transport or other usual sources like the Citizens Information service. The RSA has the clearest information, but it\u2019s buried on its e-scooter page and, even there, in bullet points and not noted as new rules.<\/p>\n When IrishCycle.com asked for a copy of the regulations on Wednesday ahead of the rule change being enacted on Friday, the Department basically said it would be published when it\u2019s published.<\/p>\n As of Saturday, the regulations are still not on the homepage of the irishstatutebook.ie, the online version of the written law book. It took looking up the regulations on the State\u2019s official legal journal to find the name and then a PDF copy of the regulations.<\/p>\n The new rules are in the Road Traffic (Electric Scooters) (Amendment) Regulations 2026 (S.I. No. 455 of 2026<\/a>), which amends what are called the \u2018principal regulations\u2019 for e-scooters, Road Traffic (Electric Scooters) Regulations 2024 (S.I. No. 199\/2024<\/a>).<\/p>\n The regulations, or \u201cstatutory instruments\u201d, are written laws signed by a Government Minister or junior minister rather than passed by parliament.<\/p>\n Other road users<\/p>\n Helmets \u2014 of a high standard type \u2014 are already required for moped and motorcycle users. Besides that, there is no helmet requirement for other road users.<\/p>\n The only other road users required to wear high-vis are learner and novice motorcyclists. Fully licensed motorcyclists, as well as pedestrians and cyclists, are not required to wear high-vis, and unlike in other countries, motorists are not required to store high-vis in their vehicles for situations like a breakdown on a motorway. <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/image-9.png\")
<\/a>IMAGE: The high-vis should have a label with this logo.<\/p>\n