'Hoverboards' are illegal in public, police warns

Hoverboards may already be a thing of the past rather than the future of transport, after new guidance issued by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has warned that it is illegal to use 'self-balancing scooters' on roads and pavements in the UK.

The Department for Transport have notified the public of a 180-year-old law that means the powered vehicles can only be used on private land.

The ruling, that comes under section 72 of the Highway Act 1835, states that it is illegal to ride or drive a vehicle on the pavement in England and Wales, and it also claims that these vehicles, which include 'self-balancing-scooters', often referred to as 'hoverboards' or 'hands-free segways', are too unsafe to use on British roads.

Although this act does not apply in Scotland, they are still illegal to ride on the pavement under the Roads (Scotland) Act 1984.

Guidance from the Department of Transport says: "You can only ride an unregistered self-balancing scooter on land which is private property, and with the landowner's permission.

"The Department for Transport would advise that appropriate safety clothing should be worn at all times."

Illegal use of self-balancing scooters was recorded back in January 2011, when the first person in the UK to be convicted of riding a Segway on the pavement was issued with a £75 fine.