The Office for Product Safety and Standards has published guidance setting out how existing product safety rules apply to e-bike conversion kits, according to a government news story dated 11 November 2026. The office presents the guidance as part of its work addressing fire risks linked to unsafe e-bikes and related products, and as a way to give businesses in the UK greater certainty.

The guidance creates no new legal obligations, the notice says. Instead, it is intended to help manufacturers and suppliers comply with the Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations 2008 and to help enforcing authorities identify kits that do not meet those rules. All conversion kits containing an electric motor fall within scope, whether or not a battery or charger is included. The notice says the guidance also covers kits that allow speeds above the legal road limit of 15.5mph, noting that such kits fitted to pedal bikes are illegal to use on the road unless the vehicle is registered and insured and the rider has a driving licence and appropriate helmet.

The guidance complements statutory guidelines on lithium-ion e-bike batteries published in 2024 and aligns with the Buy Safe, Be Safe campaign. The notice states that publication is separate from, and unrelated to, the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade's Product Safety Framework consultation, which closed on 23 June 2026 and whose response is pending.