No illegal fatbikes seized, sanctions imposed despite promised gov't intervention

Despite the caretaker government promising to intervene in cheap Chinese fatbikes flooding the Dutch market, these often illegal electric bicycles are still widely available. So far this year, the Dutch regulators haven’t seized a single fatbike and imposed zero sanctions, AD reports based on its own investigation.

In November last year, the newspaper revealed that tens of thousands of Chinese fatbikes were being smuggled into Europe and the Netherlands, avoiding VAT and import duties, and being sold online for as little as €650. The article led to parliamentary questions, and the then-Infrastructure Minister Barry Madlener promised to intervene.

In February, Madlener promised that the Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate (ILT), the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA), and Customs would intensify inspections, and the authorities would work with platforms like Marktplaats and Bol.com to remove advertisements for illegal fatbikes more quickly.

But nine months later, little has come from those promises, AD reported. Inquiries with the ILT and NVWA show that they haven’t seized a single fatbike nor imposed a single fatbike-related sanction this year. The NVWA told the newspaper that it “had no reason to seize unsafe electric bikes.” The ILT said it has only “planned one monitoring project,” is responding to reports, and is consulting with online platforms. The inspectorate added that joint ILT and NVWA inspections would begin at the end of this year. Customs did not respond to the newspaper’s questions.

Marktplaats and Bol.com confirmed that they’ve been in talks with the ILT and are acting against advertisements for illegal fatbikes. Bol.com said it removed 121 ads this year. Marktplaats couldn’t provide figures, but said it was definitely taking action.

The ILT said that, thanks to the increased oversight in the Netherlands, fatbikes with illegal specifications like motors over 250 watts are hardly being offered anymore. But according to AD, that’s not true. It found illegal models with 1,000-watt motors on AliExpress, available within days from warehouses in Poland. There is also a lot of supply on TikTok and Snapchat.

The RAI Association, which represents the legal bicycle industry, is critical of the government’s efforts so far. “The announced intensification of enforcement has yet to have the desired results,” a spokesperson told AD. “It remains child’s play to buy illegal products, and that worries us.”