Osbornes Law says it is dealing with 12 compensation cases in London where users claim the seats fell off or brakes stopped working on their Lime bikes.
Injuries suffered range from broken legs, arms and ankles, dislocated shoulders and even brain injuries, according to the law firm.
One claimant, Elliot Poole, 31, a systems analyst from south London, says he came off his hired bike in February this year after the seat allegedly fell off.
Elliot claims that he became like a “zombie” for two hours after hitting his head and he had feared that there would be permanent brain damage.
He said: “I have no recollection of what happened but apparently, I fell off, hit my head and managed to get home on a bus despite me having no idea what was going on.
“My wife was really scared as I was asking, ‘where am I and how did I get here?’
“I was acting like a zombie and she was understandably terrified that I would be permanently brain-damaged. She called an ambulance, and I only really came around three hours after I came off the bike when I was in A&E.
“The loss of memory for that period of time is the most worrying thing for me as it could have been so much worse.”
Elliot suffered a broken thumb, sprained wrist and a head injury, with post-traumatic amnesia.
He also says that there has been a significant impact on his mental health, and he really struggled to get back on a bike following the incident.
He added: “I used to be an avid user of Lime bikes and I think they are a useful form of transport, but they aren’t maintained well enough and people like me end up getting hurt.
“I only realised the seat had fallen off because, when you return a Lime bike, you have to upload a picture to Lime.
“I asked for the picture from Lime and it showed the seat was by the side of the bike, which isn’t great.
“The crash and particularly the loss of memory really shook me up and my injuries were frustrating and have affected my life.
“Then there was also the anxiety it caused. It took me a while to get back on a bike.”
Osbornes Law says that this is just one of several recent cases that have come to their attention, with a surge of people breaking their legs in what they say is now being called ‘Lime Bike Leg’.
Sam Collard, head of cycling accident claims at Osbornes Law, said: “Unfortunately, Elliott’s case is far from unique as we have seen a steady influx of cases coming to us in the past few months from people wanting to sue Lime for injuries caused by faulty bikes.
“Some of these injuries are serious and in all cases were avoidable if the bikes had been in working order.
“People like Elliot have a right to be safe on a bike they hire and not be in danger of potentially life-changing or worse injuries.
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“I hope Lime settle Elliott’s case, and those of the other 11 clients we have as soon as possible so they can move on with their lives.”
A Lime spokesperson said: “We are saddened to hear about these incidents and our thoughts are with those impacted.
“Safety informs everything we do at Lime – from how we design and maintain our vehicles, to our rider education, and how we work with cities.
“Given that this is an open legal matter, we cannot comment further at this time”.
