'Team Molly' parents sue e-bike company over daughter's death

An online community has offered support for Molly Steinsapir, a 12-year-old girl who suffered head trauma in an accident last year . Her mother and father filed a lawsuit against Rad Power Bikes.

Parents of a girl who died after an e-bike accident filed a wrongful death lawsuit Monday against The Seattle-based electric bicycle company Rad Power Bikes.

In the lawsuit, Kaye and Jonathan Steinsapir, the parents of Molly Steinsapir, who died last year in age 12, say flaws in the bike's design made it difficult for riders to slow down and stop as the bike picked up speed on the way down.

The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court, also alleged that Rad Power Bikes engaged in "inappropriate marketing of e-bikes to children," adding that the company did not "adequately warned of the dangers of children using electric bicycles".

In a statement, a spokesperson for Rad Power Bikes said, "The entire Rad Power Bikes team sends its deepest condolences to the Steinsapir family on the tragic loss of Molly Steinsapir. We are aware of the complaint filed by the family. Rad Power Bikes does not comment on pending litigation."

The accident happened on January 31, 2021, while Molly was riding with a friend in Los Angeles. Later that day, in a Twitter post from Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, his mother called for support: "Please. Please. Please. Everyone PRAY for my daughter Molly."

Over the next 16 days, Ms. Steinsapir continued to post on Twitter while Molly, who had suffered a traumatic brain injury, remained at home. hospital pediatric intensive care unit Ms. Steinsapir's tweets have been shared hundreds of thousands of times and an online community has formed around the hashtag #TeamMolly.

Molly was a passenger on a RadRunner bicycle, manufactured by Rad Power, when she got her accident. On page 49 of the model's 57-page owner's manual, a disclaimer states that "The RadRunner is intended for use by persons 18 years of age and older." On its website, Rad Power Bikes describes some of its bikes as suitable for riders who are 4-foot-10 or taller. It also includes photographs of children as passengers on its bikes. Without pedaling, the company's e-bikes can travel 20 miles per hour.

ImageThe Seattle e-bike company Rad Power Bikes recently raised more than $300 million from investors. Radenbaugh, when he was a high school student in Humboldt County, California. Now based in Seattle, the company has raised more than $300 million from investors, including Fidelity Management & Research, in funding rounds.