Dozens of e‑bikes deemed illegal were seized by authorities across the Northern Beaches this month, with many welcoming the crackdown but leaving others confused by the new laws.
Transport for NSW and police and Highway Patrol conducted the operation in Manly, Curl Curl, Dee Why and Avalon on Friday, 11 September 2026, following new amendments to the Transport Act that allow illegal e‑bikes used in public places to be seized roadside and destroyed.
Andrew Greg, 60, was the owner of the first of the 36 e‑bikes seized that day and possibly the first in the state. The Manly local was walking through the Corso with his e‑bike when pub goers watching the operation from the Steyne beachfront warned him to walk on to avoid the “blitz.”
“These guys are saying, ‘Keep walking, keep walking.’ I was confused. There’s this big media sort of contingent, then the cops ran over and grabbed me and said, ‘Come across the road,'” Andrew told us at the spot where his bike was seized. “They tested my bike and it went up to, I think, 39 km/h, which is its top speed. So they just said, ‘Yep, your bike’s an illegal bike,’ which it is,” he said frankly. “They said, ‘We’re impounding it. You’ve got 14 days to appeal, and then we’re going to crush it.’ So I said, fair enough.”
Andrew said he modified his e‑bike with a code to increase its power capabilities, making it easier to carry his kids on the back up large hills like Darley Road around Manly. Although he accepted the consequences that followed this decision, others were less impressed.
Over the past week, many readers have reached out claiming their e‑bike was seized by authorities despite it being completely street legal, so we investigated.
An e-bike is illegal in NSW if it has:
- More than 500W maximum continuous power (more than 250W from 2029)
- A throttle‑only (motor without pedalling) function over 6km/h
- A motor that continues to provide power above 25 km/h
But several of the seizures we heard about suggest the rules were being misunderstood.
One rider told us their bike was seized because it could “potentially be modified to be illegal in the future.” We put this to the top cop at Northern Beaches Police Area Command, Superintendent John Duncan, who told Manly Observer no bikes were seized for their potential to be illegal, and that the legislation is not future‑focused.
What some riders may not realise, however, is that if a bike’s engine is over 500W, it is considered illegal even if the bike is locked or coded to restrict it to 500W. This point was confirmed by Transport for NSW.
Other complaints from riders to Manly Observer included an e‑bike that was only 250W but was seized due to improper passenger pegs. Police said no bikes were seized, or could be seized, due to incorrect passenger pegs and Transport confirmed it would not be legal to seize a bike for that reason.
“If a party believes their bike was lawful, they can still write in” – Superintendent John Duncan
How do I dispute my e-bike seizure?
A reader who reached out cited her frustration with the process, claiming it has not been properly set up for e‑bike seizures: the form is only applicable to vehicles reported stolen, and police station and Highway Patrol staff were unable to help her navigate the concerns.
NSW Police state there is a 14‑day window for people to appeal their seizure, and the forms say they can only do so if they or an immediate family member were not the owner or rider of the e‑bike, or if it was ridden without their knowledge or consent at the time of the seizure. However, there seems to be some more flexibility in practice, says Superintendent Duncan.
While Superintendent Duncan affirmed all the e‑bikes seized were non‑compliant with the legislation at the time they were observed by police, and thus deemed illegal, he said people who truly thought the seizure to be incorrect should write in.Â
“Whilst the legislation may preclude some family members from applying, it seems a few are still writing in. If a party believes their bike was lawful, they can still write in,” he said.
“I am told by Highway Patrol, who are assessing the applications, that if the owner believes the seized bike was compliant and should not have been seized, they should check the declaration ‘The vehicle is not a non‑registerable motor vehicle as defined in section 4 of the Road Transport Act 2013’ (Part 3 of the application form). The owner should then provide supporting information.”
The crackdown has drawn mixed reactions from industry and advocacy groups. Bicycle NSW CEO Peter McLean says the organisation is following complaints from the public to ensure accountability is held on all sides.
“What we’re concerned about is just ensuring that they are equally and fairly handed out in terms of when and where they’re targeting, and how they’re using those powers. So we’re keeping a close eye on that to make sure that we’re not seeing too much overreach,” he said.
Mr McLean further stated that at the same time, police need to have the ability to do their jobs, and that, unfortunately, many consumers have been given a non‑street‑legal e‑bike by their manufacturers without their knowledge.
We reached out to e‑bike manufacturer Dirodi, who said that, to the best of their knowledge, the bikes seized had the throttle unlocked to operate beyond 6 km/h, or the pedal‑assist speed limit had been unlocked beyond 25 km/h.
Francisco Furman, owner of Manly Bikes, has a different view, saying he was in contact with a teen whose e‑bike he says was perfectly street legal when police seized it. “They didn’t have the [helmet] strap on, which actually, that is illegal. So that’s fair. But the e‑bike was completely legal. It had 500 watts. It was not unrestricted, and they impounded the bike because that teenager didn’t have the strap on of the helmet… they’re taking liberties,” he claimed.
“I think education starts at home with parents, then at school, and then the police,” Furman said. He believes e‑bikes will become redundant, particularly on hills, if they are restricted  to 250W or under as will occur from 2029.Â
Transport would not comment on individual cases but pointed us to rules that do not list helmet-wearing as grounds for seizure.
On the enforcement side, authorities use a speed‑testing dynamometer as their primary form of roadside testing. There is currently only one such unit in the state, which determines speed alone; two more will be delivered later in the year and will also measure power output.
Outside of this test, Transport for NSW confirmed e‑bikes can still be seized if an authorised officer reasonably suspects an e‑bike is illegal or non‑compliant.
During last week’s operation, an e‑bike allegedly capable of reaching speeds of more than 90 km/h was seized from a 14‑year‑old boy at Warriewood. Police also issued 16 penalty notices and 46 cautions for various offences, including helmet and mobile phone offences, and conducted education and community engagement with Transport for NSW officers.
Mr McLean agreed, when asked, that education protocols may be beneficial for authorities to identify modified e‑bikes without a dynamometer, to avoid any mistaken seizures as the practice becomes more commonplace.
“In that area it’s probably something that’s quite an appropriate thing. If I was in a position with my knowledge of e‑bike technology, I could give extremely high reasonable suspicion on what you see, but for someone that is perhaps less aware of the nuance, the detail of all of the different e‑bike devices out there, their reasonable suspicion might be exercised quite differently.”
Officers involved in the recent operation were using body‑worn video and making notes on what they observed and why bikes were seized.
