E-Bikes, Golf Carts, and Kids: Who Pays When a Georgia Child Gets Hurt?

Christmas is coming, and a lot of Georgia children are about to wake up to something with a battery and a throttle.

Many of those machines are fun. Some are not legally what the box says they are. And when a child is hurt on one, the first question in the claim is often one no parent thought to ask at the store: what exactly was this thing?

The answer can decide who pays. This post explains why.

An e-bike is not always an e-bike

Georgia law defines an “electric assisted bicycle” in O.C.G.A. § 40-1-1. It has two or three wheels, a saddle, fully operative pedals, and a motor of not more than 750 watts. O.C.G.A. § 40-6-300 sorts those bicycles into three classes:

• Class I: The motor helps only while the rider is pedaling, and stops helping at 20 miles per hour.
• Class II: The motor can propel the bicycle by itself, up to 20 miles per hour.
• Class III: The motor helps only while the rider is pedaling, and stops helping at 28 miles per hour.

Now look at what is actually being sold. A machine with more than 750 watts, or with pedals that are only for show, may not be an electric assisted bicycle at all, whatever the listing online called it. That matters a great deal.

In August 2026, the Chatham County Police Department announced it would start citing parents who let minors ride illegal motorized cycles. Its chief said any parent who buys a power cycle “has the responsibility to make sure that their child can legally operate it under state law.” According to the department, a machine that falls outside the e-bike definition requires a valid driver’s license, registration, and insurance. The department also says riders of Class III e-bikes must be 15 or older and must wear a helmet.

Golf carts are not a toy under Georgia law

In Georgia, a golf cart on a public street is generally treated as a “personal transportation vehicle.” O.C.G.A. § 40-6-331 lets local governments decide which streets and paths those vehicles may use, and on what conditions.

The state statute says all operators of those vehicles must have a valid driver’s license. There is one exception, for a locality that passed an ordinance before January 1, 2012 allowing use on the streets without a license. So the rule can change when you cross a city line. You have to read the local ordinance.

The statute does not treat a 13-year-old differently because the cart is quiet and slow. A child driving a cart with friends hanging off the back seat is a very common sight in some Georgia neighborhoods. It is also how a lot of children get hurt.

If a car hits your child

The rules for the driver do not change because your child was on something new.

O.C.G.A. § 40-6-93 requires every driver to exercise due care to avoid colliding with any pedestrian, and to exercise proper precaution upon observing any child. I wrote about that duty and bicycles years ago. Expect the insurance company to argue the statute does not fit, or that the child was riding too fast, in the wrong place, or on a machine a child was not allowed to ride.

Georgia uses comparative fault. If the injured person is partly at fault, the damages are reduced by that percentage. At 50 percent or more, there is no recovery. Whether a child can be charged with fault at all depends on the child’s age and capacity. I explained that in my post on Halloween and child pedestrians.

Riding a machine illegally does not end the case. The question is still who caused the crash. A driver who ran a stop sign ran it whether the child was on a bicycle or a moped.

If the driver has too little insurance, or none, look at your own uninsured motorist coverage. And be very careful what you sign. I wrote about a Georgia case where one missing sentence in a release cost a client her UM claim.

If your child is hurt with no car involved

Many of these injuries are one child, one machine, and a curb. Or two children on a cart, with one of them driving. Here is where the money may be.

The other child’s parents. If a parent hands a dangerous machine to a child who cannot handle it, that parent may be liable for negligent entrustment. I gave other examples in my post on when a parent is liable for a child’s conduct. Georgia’s family purpose doctrine, which applies to cars and even boats, may be another route.

The homeowner’s policy. This is the trap. I have written about how homeowner’s insurance works when a child is hurt at another family’s home. But many homeowner’s policies limit or exclude coverage for motorized vehicles, often with exceptions that depend on where the vehicle was being used. The exact policy wording controls. Get the policy before you count on it, and report the injury promptly.

The auto policy. Some auto policies may cover some of these machines, and many will not. Do not guess. Ask.

The manufacturer and the seller. O.C.G.A. § 51-1-11 makes the manufacturer of a product sold as new strictly liable for injuries caused by a defect that existed when it left the manufacturer’s control. Brakes that fail, batteries that catch fire, frames that crack, and throttles that stick may all be product claims. So may a machine sold for children that was not safe for children. Many of these products are imported, and finding someone in this country to answer for them takes work. Keep the box, the manual, the listing, and the receipt.

What about the helmet?

Under O.C.G.A. § 40-6-296(d), a person under 16 may not ride a bicycle on a public road, path, or sidewalk without a helmet. The insurance company will want to know whether your child was wearing one.

Here the statute helps you. It says a violation of the bicycle helmet subsection is not negligence per se, is not contributory negligence per se, and is not evidence of negligence or liability. That language was written about bicycles, and how it applies to every machine with a battery is another question.

Put a helmet on your child anyway. A legal argument is no use to a child with a brain injury. I have written about how often head injuries in children are missed.

Before you buy one

• Check the watts, the pedals, and the top speed. If you cannot find them, do not buy it.
• Find out whether your child can legally ride it where you live. Check the state law and the city or county ordinance.
• Call your insurance agent. Ask whether your homeowner’s and auto policies cover this machine, and get the answer in writing.
• Buy a real helmet, and make wearing it the rule.
• Think about who else will ride it. When the neighbor’s child is hurt on your machine, you are the one being called.
• Look it up at cpsc.gov/Recalls before you buy, and again before you let your child ride it.

If your child is hurt

• Get your child medical care, and follow up even if your child seems fine.
• Report the crash to the police, and get the report number.
• Do not repair, sell, or throw away the machine. Do not let anyone charge it or “take a look at it.” It is the evidence.
• Photograph the machine, the labels, the scene, and your child’s injuries.
• Get the names of the witnesses and the other children who were there.
• Ask neighbors for doorbell and security camera video now. Many systems overwrite footage within days.
• Do not give a recorded statement to any insurance company before you get advice.

Remember too that there are two claims and two clocks. Your child’s claim is usually protected until the 20th birthday. Your claim for the medical bills is not.

I am not telling you to skip the gift. I have ten children, and I know what the Christmas list looks like. I am telling you to know what you are buying, because the law will ask.

Attorney Pete Pearson has practiced personal injury law in Georgia since 1996. He has a special interest in helping families of injured children. He is a father of ten and lives with his wife and children in Newborn, Georgia.

If you need to talk, my direct line is Six-Seven-Eight 358-2564, or email pete@petepearsonlaw.com.