Statute Details
- Title: Active Mobility (Rider and Driver Insurance — Exemption) Order 2020
- Act Code: AMA2017-S981-2020
- Legislation Type: Subsidiary Legislation (SL)
- Authorising Act: Active Mobility Act 2017
- Authorising Power: Section 66 of the Active Mobility Act 2017
- Legislative Instrument No.: S 981/2020
- Enacting Formula: Minister for Transport makes the Order in exercise of powers under section 66 of the Active Mobility Act 2017
- Citation and Commencement: Comes into operation on 2 December 2020
- Key Provision(s): Section 2 (exemption for shared mobility licensees hiring out bicycles)
- Primary Subject Matter: Exemption from rider/driver insurance requirement (specifically, exemption from section 58A(1) of the Active Mobility Act 2017)
- Related Legislation: Active Mobility Act 2017; Shared Mobility Enterprises (Control and Licensing) Act 2020
What Is This Legislation About?
The Active Mobility (Rider and Driver Insurance — Exemption) Order 2020 (“the Order”) is a targeted regulatory instrument. In plain terms, it creates a narrow exemption for certain shared mobility operators—specifically, licensees (or class licensees) under the Shared Mobility Enterprises (Control and Licensing) Act 2020—when they make bicycles available for hire to members of the public.
The practical effect of the Order is to relieve eligible operators from complying with an insurance-related requirement found in the Active Mobility Act 2017. The Order does not abolish insurance obligations across the board; rather, it exempts the relevant licensees from the operation of section 58A(1) of the Active Mobility Act 2017 in relation to the riding of the bicycle by the hirer.
Because the Order is an exemption, it is best understood as part of a broader legislative framework: the Active Mobility Act 2017 establishes regulatory requirements for active mobility devices and related responsibilities, while the Shared Mobility Enterprises regime governs licensing and control of shared mobility businesses. This Order bridges the two by recognising that shared mobility bicycle hiring may be structured differently from other active mobility arrangements, and therefore may not require the same insurance coverage for the rider in the specific scenario described.
What Are the Key Provisions?
Section 1: Citation and commencement is straightforward. It provides the formal name of the instrument and states that it comes into operation on 2 December 2020. For practitioners, this matters for determining whether compliance (or non-compliance) with the insurance requirement would be assessed as at that date, and for identifying the relevant version of the law at the time of an incident or regulatory action.
Section 2: Shared mobility enterprise hiring out bicycles is the substantive provision. It sets out the exemption and the conditions for its application. The section provides that a licensee or class licensee under the Shared Mobility Enterprises (Control and Licensing) Act 2020 who makes available any bicycle for hire by any individual to ride wholly or partly on any public path is exempt from section 58A(1) of the Active Mobility Act 2017 with respect to the riding of the bicycle by such an individual.
Several elements in Section 2 are legally significant and should be parsed carefully:
- Who is eligible: the exemption applies only to a “licensee or class licensee” under the Shared Mobility Enterprises licensing framework. This implies that the operator must be properly licensed (or within a class licensing category) under that Act.
- What activity triggers the exemption: the operator must “make available any bicycle for hire by any individual.” The focus is on bicycle hiring to individuals (i.e., a shared mobility model where members of the public rent bicycles).
- Where the bicycle is ridden: the bicycle must be ridden “wholly or partly on any public path.” This ties the exemption to public-space riding, which is typically where regulatory insurance requirements are most relevant.
- What is being exempted: the exemption is from section 58A(1) of the Active Mobility Act 2017. While the extract does not reproduce section 58A(1), the Order’s title and wording indicate that section 58A(1) concerns rider and/or driver insurance obligations.
- Scope of the exemption: it is “with respect to the riding of the bicycle by such an individual.” This suggests the exemption is not necessarily a blanket removal of all insurance-related duties; it is specifically linked to the rider’s act of riding the bicycle under the described hiring arrangement.
From a compliance perspective, the key question is whether the operator’s business model and the circumstances of use fall within the Section 2 description. If the operator is not a licensee/class licensee under the Shared Mobility Enterprises Act, the exemption would not apply. Similarly, if the bicycle is not “for hire” or if the riding does not involve a “public path,” the exemption may be unavailable.
Although the Order contains only two sections in the extract, its legal impact is meaningful because it modifies the operation of a specific statutory insurance provision. In statutory interpretation terms, an exemption order typically operates as a carve-out: it displaces the general rule in the parent Act for the defined class of persons and circumstances. Practitioners should therefore treat Section 2 as an exception to section 58A(1), rather than as an independent insurance regime.
How Is This Legislation Structured?
The Order is structured as a short subsidiary instrument with a minimal number of provisions. Based on the available text, it contains:
- Section 1 (Citation and commencement): identifies the Order and its commencement date.
- Section 2 (Shared mobility enterprise hiring out bicycles): sets out the exemption from section 58A(1) of the Active Mobility Act 2017 for eligible shared mobility licensees/class licensees in relation to the riding of hired bicycles on public paths.
There are no additional parts, schedules, or procedural provisions in the extract. The instrument’s function is therefore purely substantive and conditional: it grants a defined exemption rather than establishing administrative processes.
Who Does This Legislation Apply To?
The Order applies to shared mobility bicycle hiring operators that are licensees or class licensees under the Shared Mobility Enterprises (Control and Licensing) Act 2020. In other words, it is not directed at all active mobility participants (such as individual riders) and not directed at all active mobility device categories. It is directed at a specific regulatory category of business operators.
Its exemption is triggered when such an operator makes bicycles available for hire to individuals who will ride them wholly or partly on public paths. The exemption is “with respect to the riding of the bicycle by such an individual,” meaning the exemption is tied to the rider-hirer’s use of the bicycle in the public-path context.
Why Is This Legislation Important?
This Order is important because it directly affects the insurance compliance landscape for shared mobility bicycle operators. Insurance requirements in active mobility legislation are typically designed to manage risk, allocate responsibility, and ensure that injured parties can recover losses. By carving out a defined exemption, the Order reflects a policy judgment that, for the specified shared mobility bicycle hiring scenario, the insurance requirement in section 58A(1) should not apply in the same way.
For practitioners advising operators, the Order is a compliance tool: it can reduce regulatory exposure where the operator fits squarely within the exemption’s conditions. However, because it is an exemption, it must be applied carefully. If the operator’s licensing status under the Shared Mobility Enterprises Act is uncertain, or if the bicycle is not actually “for hire” in the relevant sense, the exemption may not protect the operator.
For enforcement and dispute contexts, the Order also matters. If an injured party or regulator alleges breach of the Active Mobility Act’s insurance requirement, the operator may invoke the exemption as a statutory defence or rebuttal. The legal analysis would likely focus on whether the operator is a licensee/class licensee, whether the bicycle was made available for hire, and whether the riding occurred wholly or partly on public paths.
Related Legislation
- Active Mobility Act 2017 (Act 3 of 2017): including section 58A(1) (the insurance provision from which the exemption is granted) and section 66 (the authorising power for the Minister to make exemption orders).
- Shared Mobility Enterprises (Control and Licensing) Act 2020 (Act 8 of 2020): the licensing framework under which the exempt licensees/class licensees must fall.
Source Documents
This article provides an overview of the Active Mobility (Rider and Driver Insurance — Exemption) Order 2020 for legal research and educational purposes. It does not constitute legal advice. Readers should consult the official text for authoritative provisions.