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Why the Pattern Matters
“A car hit me” is not one claim. Florida’s traffic code imposes different duties on different movements, and an e-bike crash is proved by identifying which movement the driver was making and which subsection governs it.
A right hook turns on a fixed, measurable condition — whether the bicycle was at least 20 feet from the intersection. A left cross turns on a yield duty written in one sentence. A dooring turns on whether opening the door was “reasonably safe.” Those are three different arguments, supported by three different sets of photographs, and the photographs stop being available within days.
Everything below is cited to the subsection it comes from. You will not find a crash statistic anywhere in this section, because none could be sourced to a named dataset and year — and an uncited number on a law firm’s website is worth less than no number at all.
The Guides in This Section
Car vs. E-Bike Collisions
The duties a driver owes you, the 3-foot passing rule that names e-bikes expressly, and what decides fault.
Dooring Accidents
A door opened into your path. Fla. Stat. § 316.2005, and why riding outside the door zone is lawful.
Right-Hook Collisions
Passed, then cut off. The 20-foot rule in § 316.151(1)(a)2. that almost nobody knows about.
Left-Cross Collisions
An oncoming driver turned across you. Section 316.122 is one sentence and it is not ambiguous.
Sidewalk and Crosswalk Accidents
Where a rider has a pedestrian's rights under § 316.2065(9), and what your city may restrict.
Road Hazard and Pavement Defects
When the surface caused the fall, and the caps and presentment deadlines in § 768.28.
Battery Fires and Thermal Runaway
A product claim rather than a road negligence claim, governed by different law entirely.
Brake, Fork, and Frame Failures
Mechanical failure, and the CPSC requirements § 316.20655(5) incorporates.
Hit-and-Run E-Bike Crashes
When the driver leaves. Fla. Stat. § 316.027 and the uninsured motorist route.
Every accident type in this silo is now written. Each guide identifies the movement the driver was making, the subsection that governs it, and the evidence that establishes it.
The Duties a Driver Owes an E-Bike Rider
Start from the bridge provision. Fla. Stat. § 316.20655(1) gives an electric bicycle and its operator “all the rights and privileges, and … all of the duties, of a bicycle or the operator of a bicycle, including s. 316.2065,” and provides that an electric bicycle “is a vehicle to the same extent as a bicycle.” Fla. Stat. § 316.2065(1) then gives a rider “all of the rights and all of the duties applicable to the driver of any other vehicle.”
| Movement and Subsection | What the Statute Requires |
|---|---|
| Passing — § 316.083(2), (3) | A driver overtaking “the bicycle or other nonmotorized vehicle or electric bicycle” must pass “at a safe distance of not less than 3 feet.” One of the few provisions naming e-bikes in its own text. |
| Turning right — § 316.151(1)(a)2. | A driver overtaking a bicycle may turn right “only if the bicycle is at least 20 feet from the intersection, and is of such a distance that the driver of a vehicle may safely turn,” after signaling. |
| Turning left — § 316.122 | A driver turning left within an intersection or into an alley, private road, or driveway must yield to any vehicle approaching from the opposite direction. |
| Opening a door — § 316.2005 | No person may open a vehicle door “unless and until it is reasonably safe to do so.” |
| General due care — § 316.130(15) | Every driver must “exercise due care to avoid colliding with any pedestrian or any person propelling a human-powered vehicle.” |
| Leaving the scene — § 316.027 | A driver in a crash causing injury must stop and remain. Injury is a third-degree felony under (2)(a); serious bodily injury a second-degree felony under (2)(b); death a first-degree felony under (2)(c) carrying a 4-year mandatory minimum. |
David I. Shiner, Esq.
Founder, Shiner Law Group · AV Preeminent® rated · Florida Bar member since 2002
David I. Shiner founded Shiner Law Group and has been a member of The Florida Bar since 2002. He is a graduate of Nova Southeastern University’s law school and holds an AV Preeminent® rating from Martindale-Hubbell. The firm represents injured people across Florida from offices in Boca Raton, West Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Fort Pierce, Orlando, Wellington, and Belle Glade, and handles these cases on a contingency basis with free consultations and no attorney’s fee unless there is a recovery.
What the Same Statutes Ask of You
The bridge runs both ways: § 316.20655(1) imports the duties along with the rights. The ones that come up after a crash are these.
- Lane position — § 316.2065(5)(a). Ride in the bicycle lane or, where there is none, as close as practicable to the right-hand curb. Practicable, not possible — debris, a door zone, and a right-turn-only lane all bear on it.
- Lighting — § 316.2065(7). Between sunset and sunrise, a white front lamp visible at 500 feet and a rear lamp and reflector each visible at 600 feet. The rear requires both.
- Sidewalks and crosswalks — § 316.2065(9). On a sidewalk or in a crosswalk a rider “has all the rights and duties applicable to a pedestrian.”
- Classification — § 316.20655(3), (4). The label must show class, top assisted speed, and wattage, and modifying the motor's speed capability without replacing the label is prohibited.
One thing is expressly not asked of you. Fla. Stat. § 316.2065(18) provides that failure to wear a bicycle helmet “may not be considered evidence of negligence or contributory negligence.” Compare § 316.614(10), under which a seat belt violation may be considered as comparative negligence evidence — and which excludes electric bicycles at § 316.614(3)(a) anyway. See the helmet law guide.
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What Proves Any of Them
Across every pattern the same short list decides the case, and most of it is gone within a week.
- The bicycle, unrepaired. Damage corroborates the mechanism, and if a component failed it is the whole of a product claim.
- The classification label required by § 316.20655(3) — photograph it before the machine goes anywhere.
- Vehicle rest position and the debris field, which is what makes the 3-foot and 20-foot questions answerable rather than arguable.
- Lane markings, photographed before they are repainted or reconfigured.
- Video from doorbells, dashcams, transit and business cameras — routinely overwritten within days.
- The crash report number. Confidential for 60 days under § 316.066(2)(a), but available to you as a party under § 316.066(2)(b). Note § 316.066(4) keeps the report itself out of evidence at trial.
What to do after a crash sets this out step by step, and who is liable covers the parties beyond the driver — owners, employers, manufacturers, retailers, and road authorities.