Florida law treats an e-bike as a bicycle, not a motor vehicle — so a child riding one has no insurance obligations of her own; recovery turns on the at-fault driver’s coverage or, once the driver has fled and can’t be identified, the family’s own uninsured motorist coverage. If your child was hurt in a hit-and-run on an e-bike, an e-bike accident attorney can start that claim now, before detectives make an arrest. Call The Perazzo Law Firm at 888-PERAZZO for a free case review.
The Perazzo Law Firm has learned, according to CBS Miami, that a driver struck two siblings riding an e-bike near NW 117th Street and NW 7th Avenue in Miami-Dade County on the night of September 9, 2026, then fled. The driver had turned left onto NW 117th Street just before the crash, according to NBC6, which also reported that the 10-year-old girl died from her injuries and her brother was taken in critical condition to the Ryder Trauma Center at Jackson Memorial Hospital. Local10 reported that Miami-Dade Sheriff’s detectives recovered the Nissan Versa involved days later, but as of CBS Miami’s latest coverage, the driver remains unidentified and no charges have been filed.
E-bikes are legally bicycles in Florida, not motor vehicles
Under Fla. Stat. § 316.003, an electric bicycle is defined as a bicycle with fully operable pedals and a small electric motor — and Fla. Stat. § 316.20655 gives an e-bike rider “all of the rights” and “all of the duties” of an ordinary bicycle rider. That classification matters: unlike a moped or motorcycle, an e-bike carries no registration, license, or insurance requirement. The family’s recovery depends on the driver’s coverage or the family’s own.
A driver’s insurance may not cover much — or anything
Florida does not require an ordinary driver to carry a standalone bodily-injury liability policy. Fla. Stat. § 324.022 sets the mandatory minimum at $10,000 in property-damage coverage; a driver can satisfy that requirement without ever purchasing coverage for the injuries or death they cause to another person. Even once this driver is identified, there is no guarantee their policy extends to what the family will need.
When the driver isn’t found, your own coverage often fills the gap
As a practical matter, insurers and Florida courts have generally treated an unidentified hit-and-run driver as functionally uninsured for uninsured-motorist (UM) purposes. That makes a family’s own UM coverage the backstop while a Florida bicycle accident lawyer works to identify the driver in parallel. Our related guide covers what happens when a Florida e-bike hit-and-run driver is never found.
The criminal case and the civil claim are separate tracks
Leaving the scene of a crash involving death is a first-degree felony under Fla. Stat. § 316.027. If this driver is caught, that prosecution proceeds independently of the family’s civil claim: a criminal conviction does not put money toward medical bills, funeral costs, or lost income.
Florida’s Wrongful Death Act and the two-year deadline
Florida’s Wrongful Death Act, Fla. Stat. §§ 768.16–768.26, lets a personal representative pursue a claim on behalf of surviving family after a death caused by another’s negligence. That claim is subject to the two-year deadline in Fla. Stat. § 95.11(5)(e). A wrongful death lawyer can evaluate which sources of coverage apply once the driver is identified or the two-year window closes.
FAQ
Does a 10-year-old e-bike rider need her own insurance in Florida?
No. Florida law classifies an e-bike as a bicycle, and bicycles carry no registration, license, or insurance requirement.
What if the hit-and-run driver is never identified?
In practice, an unidentified hit-and-run driver is treated as uninsured for UM purposes, so the family’s own uninsured motorist coverage is often the available path to compensation.
Does the criminal charge for fleeing the scene help the family financially?
No. A felony conviction under Fla. Stat. § 316.027 is a separate track from the civil case and does not itself compensate the family.
If your family is facing this situation, contact The Perazzo Law Firm for a free case review at 888-PERAZZO. No attorney’s fee unless we recover for you.
Miami Personal Injury Attorney Advertising. The Perazzo Law Firm, P.A. is headquartered in North Miami Beach, Florida, with an office in Atlanta, Georgia. This page is general information, not legal advice, and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Responsible attorney: Jonathan Perazzo, Esq.