An electric tricycle burst into flames while parked outside Buckingham Palace.
Video posted on social media show the firefighters tackled the blaze on Spur Road in central London at around 12.42pm on Saturday afternoon.
A person who posted footage of the incident on X said they heard an “explosion” as the vehicle caught fire.
The charred remains of what appeared to be a tricycle and its frame were seen after the fire was extinguished.
It is thought that the electronic vehicle was used to tow a rickshaw or a pedicab.
The Metropolitan Police said the fire was not believed to be suspicious or deliberate and the incident was quickly brought to an end.
It is believed that the fire started inside the battery of the e-vehicle.
E-bike and e-scooter fires are becoming increasingly common as the vehicles become more widely used in London and other cities.
Most of the fires they involved were in houses while their batteries were being charged.
London Fire Brigade said that, on average in 2023, he was called to an e-bike or e-scooter fire once every two days. The brigade says the risk of fire increases when unsafe or damaged batteries are charged.
A man died in north London in July last year after the e-bike started a fire at a property in Kentish Town.
A spokesman for the Met Police said: “At 12.43pm on Saturday, March 30, police were alerted to a pedicab on fire on Spur Road, SW1.
“A road closure was in place while London Fire Brigade responded. No injuries were reported.
“The fire is not believed to be suspicious or deliberate.”
