Motorcyclists 21 years of age and older may choose not to wear a helmet if they have at least $20,000 in initial medical services and have been registered on a motorcycle or have successfully completed an approved motorcycle safety course for at least two years. Today, each state has its own law. For example, people over the age of 17 can get away with wearing a helmet in Maine, but they can`t in Tennessee. The motorcycle helmet law is so powerful that if you`re planning a trip or tour, you`ll either want to check every condition you`re going through ahead of time or assume you`ll need a quality helmet for the entire trip. In California, anyone who rides or rides a motorcycle must wear a helmet. All helmets must meet U.S. Department of Transportation and state safety standards and be fastened with helmet straps. Here is a link to an official study on the impact of bicycle helmet legislation on bicycle deaths. Greg Rodgers, an employee of the Consumer Product Safety Commission, released a study that concludes that the presence of a state law increases helmet use by 18.4 percent. New York State reported that since the passage of its first helmet law in 1989 for passengers under 5 years of age and its second in 1994 for cyclists under 14 years of age, the annual rate of cyclists hospitalized for bicycle-related head injuries for the under-14 age group has increased from 464 in 1990 to 209 in 1995. The rate among cyclists aged 14 and older declined less rapidly, from 454 to 382 in the same years. There`s no way to pinpoint exactly how much of the improvement is due to helmet laws, as there is no data on improvements in bike facility safety, cyclist education, or total miles driven during those years, and helmet advertising campaigns by Safe Kids Worldwide and others have been active in the state. However, it is likely that increased helmet use, sparked by the passage of the first law in 1989 and advertising campaigns in New York City communities, played a role in reducing injuries.
New Jersey reported in July 1997 that, since the introduction of a helmet law for children under 14, the number of bicycle deaths in this group had dropped by 60 per cent, from 41 in 1987-1991 to 16 in 1992-1997. For drivers aged 14 and over, it was 75 and 71. The Sommers Point School Board in New Jersey added a helmet rule and increased helmet use by those who go to school from 6 percent to more than 70 percent. His lawyer said not requiring helmets could hold the school district liable in the event of an injury. Duval County, Florida reported an increase in helmet use across all age groups, from 19 percent in 1996 to 47 percent in 1997 after the Florida Act was passed. The number of bicycle fatalities fell from five to one and the number of injuries from 325 to 105. The results were even better in the age group covered by the law. Hillsborough County, Florida, also reports an increase in helmet use and a decrease in injuries as a result of the passage of the same law. A study conducted in North Carolina that used actual field observation before (1999) and after (2002) of their law for children under 16 showed a slight increase in helmet use for adults, but no increase for children who fall under the law. Overall, NC helmet use on the road increased from 18% to 24%, with larger increases among mountain bikers. The study concluded that “statistical analysis suggests that the law did not cover a different increase in helmet use among children aged zero to 15 who are required to wear a helmet compared to children aged 16 and older, and was not covered by the law.
Although the difference in helmet use between surveys (1999 before the law and 2002 after the law) has been significant, it is clear that mandatory helmets have so far had little impact on the increase in helmet use by children. As far as we know, they have not updated the study since 2002. A study published in Pediatrics in 2002 found that in Canada, the rate of bicycle head injuries dropped significantly (45% reduction) in provinces where laws were passed compared to provinces and territories that did not pass legislation (27% reduction). A 2010 Canadian study showed that bicycle use remained constant after helmet laws were passed in two provinces, and that helmet use increased more by laws of all ages than by those that apply only to children. A study of California statistics by Lee et al., published in 2005 in Accident Analysis & Prevention, shows that head injuries in the under-16 group covered by the law decreased by 18.2 percent in California after the passage of the state helmet law. There was no change in adult head injury rates. This statistical analysis concludes that the adoption of a national bicycle helmet law for teenage cyclists reduces cycling of those covered by the law by 4 to 5%. We note a number of issues with the data they use, but we are still concerned about the conclusion. No real number of drivers in the U.S. has ever shown that this leads to a result.
These are states like Georgia, where motorcycle helmet law is “universal,” meaning it applies to all motorcyclists and motorcyclists, regardless of age. The state enacted a universal helmet law in 1989, requiring anyone riding a motorcycle to wear a DOT-approved helmet. If you live in Nebraska or plan to travel by motorcycle in the state, note that a proposal to repeal the Universal Helmet Act was submitted in early 2021. The proposed legislation has not been implemented and is still pending, so check for updates on its status. Footnote 11 Pennsylvania`s Motorcycle Helmet Use Act applies to all drivers within the first two years of licensing, unless the operator has completed the safety course approved by the PennDOT or the Motorcycle Safety Foundation. ↩ Some states have helmet laws that only apply to young cyclists. Helmet use is generally low in these states (GAO, 1991), and incomplete laws do not result in a significant reduction in mortality rates for young cyclists ([Houston D., 2007]). A reduction in mortality rates in all age groups was estimated for partial coverage laws compared to no law by [D.
Houston & Richardson, 2008], but the effect was much smaller (7% to 8%) than that of universal coverage (22% to 33%). When Florida lifted the helmet requirement for all motorcyclists 21 years of age and older, there was an 81% increase in the number of fatal motorcyclists ([Ulmer and Northrup, 2005]). Among riders under 21, who were still covered by the helmet law, deaths even increased. Hospital admissions and treatment costs have also increased following the repeal of universal helmet laws (Derrick & Faucher, 2009; GAO, 1991). (UNC Highway Safety Research Center, 2011, pp. 5-8) Arkansas requires motorcyclists and passengers under the age of 21 to wear helmets. However, this does not apply to three-wheeled motorcycles with cab and windscreen, which do not exceed twenty hp (20 hp) when these motorcycles are used by municipal police stations. There is a unique twist to Delaware`s helmet law. Operators and passengers up to the age of 19 must wear a helmet that complies with federal safety regulations.
Although the law does not require drivers and their passengers 19 years of age or older to wear them, they must have a helmet in their possession when riding a motorcycle. In Connecticut, all under the age of 18 must wear a helmet to ride or ride a motorcycle. There is a $90 fine for riding without a helmet. For most motorcyclists, helmets are the only thing that protects their head in the event of a collision. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, wearing a helmet reduces the risk of death by 37 percent and the risk of suffering head trauma by 69 percent. Helmets must be worn by anyone under 21 years of age riding a motorcycle. Wearing a helmet is mandatory for anyone, regardless of age, who drives with a learner`s license or who has had a motorcycle license on their driver`s license for less than a year. The state repealed its Universal Helmet Act in 1976, which required all motorcycle riders to wear helmets. Until the legislator decides otherwise, wearing a helmet while driving is optional, regardless of your age. Most states have laws that require a driver and passenger to wear a helmet.
Some states, such as Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Hawaii, Indiana, New Mexico, Utah and Maine, require drivers and passengers 18 and under to wear a helmet. The state repealed its universal helmet law in 1977. Currently, helmets must be worn by all cyclists under the age of 18. Helmet use is optional for guests 18 years of age and older at the discretion of the cyclist. In Idaho, drivers and passengers under the age of 18 must wear a helmet that meets or exceeds the helmet standards set by the Director of Motor Vehicles. However, the helmet requirement does not apply if the motorcycles are operated or operated on private property. Dellinger AM, Kresno M. Bicycle helmet use among children in the United States: The impact of legislation, personal and household factors. Journal of Safety Research 2010;41(4):375-80.
Iowa has no motorcycle helmet laws. Motorcyclists can decide whether or not to wear protective equipment. Studies in states that have adopted universal helmet laws have found use rates of 90% or more immediately after the law came into force, compared to 50% or less before the law ([Ulmer and Preusser, 2003], Section II).