Department of Motor Violations?
The New York DMV declined to commit to investigating—let alone penalizing—the company behind a DMV-certified moped that’s all over New York City streets despite new evidence that it violates federal safety requirements.
The vehicle in question is the Fly-9 model sold by Fly E-Bike, a major e-bike and moped retailer in the city that was the subject of a recent Streetsblog investigation. As part of the probe, Streetsblog purchased a Fly-9 and sent it to the respected vehicle testing firm Applus+ IDIADA to check it for compliance with the mandatory Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards.
There are nine of those standards that mopeds have to meet to be street legal. IDIADA tested for compliance with five of them and found the Fly-9 failed to meet any of those five.
That fact seems to be news to the DMV, which certified the vehicle in 2022, according to records obtained by Streetsblog through a Freedom of Information Law request. The DMV requires vehicles to meet the federal standards to be registered in the state. But no worries there: in Fly's certification request for the Fly-9, CEO Ou Zhou wrote that the two-wheeler was "in compliance with all applicable Federal Safety and Emissions Standards.” Ou’s word was apparently good enough for the DMV, which approved the Fly-9 two days later, clearing the way for its sale in New York.
So, what does the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles have to say now that it knows that the Fly-9 does not, in fact, comply with the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards? And that Fly’s pledge to the contrary appears to have been untrue? Not much.
“Safety is always our highest priority and when concerns are raised, we take those matters very seriously," DMV spokesman Walt McClure wrote in a terse email to Streetsblog. "We appreciate the information you have provided and are actively reviewing."
What does that review entail? No answer. How long will it take? No timeline. Will the DMV revoke the Fly-9’s certification? Issue fines? Look into whether the many other DMV-certified Fly mopeds actually comply with the federal standards? Will it do anything of substance beyond “reviewing?” Crickets.
Fly boss Ou similarly did not respond to a request for comment this week or answer detailed questions in January about Streetsblog’s findings.
By last summer, Fly was a defendant in eight lawsuits stemming from claims of battery fires and other product failures that allegedly killed three people and injured 13 others. (Fly has denied wrongdoing, and by January at least one suit had settled.) One of those suits followed a fire in the Bronx in 2021 that was allegedly sparked by the battery on a Fly-10 e-moped. That blaze killed Christopher Valentin and injured a number of his family members.Fly continued to sell the Fly-10 after the Valentin fire. Two years later, the same model popped up at the scene of another fatal Bronx battery fire, according to FDNY photographs obtained by Streetsblog through a FOIL request (Fly has not responded to requests for comment on either fire.)
Fly or its subsidiaries have also received 64 summonses for allegedly selling uncertified batteries or micromobility devices and another 22 summonses for allegedly selling illegal mopeds, according to Department of Consumer and Worker Protection data. (None of those were dismissed by January, according to the department.) City investigators also claimed 116 alleged violations of the fire code and possibly other city codes at Fly locations in 2023. (The FDNY did not respond to a question about how many of those violations were later dismissed or resolved.)
At least there are some city agencies willing to take action on a major street safety issue (albeit not the Department of Transportation). The DMV is apparently content to watch from the sidelines.
