What is your opinion on Helmet laws?

Question

I personally wear one every time I go out. And when I teach my classes, I go over the benefits of wearing one. But, I feel it's your head so it's your choice. No law should inhibit a persons right to choose.

I feel the same about seat belts.

Exceptions would be child passengers and under 18 riders.

Your thoughts?

Answer 1

i've wrecked at 70mph... i hit a deer and then skidded



i was wearing a beanie



the beanie split, and had a nasty scrape on it



the doc, the emt and my insurance rep all agree, if i'd have been wearing a full faced helmet, i'd have snapped my neck and been a quadrapalegic or be dead



i'm glad i had the choice to wear a beanie



there are people who want to ban beanies and make everyone wear full faced helmets all the time



i am dead set against that, so to go all together without a helmet should also be the operators choice! we have enough other people making enough other decisions for us, this isn't communist china!

Answer 2

I feel like if you carry your own health insurance and are willing to risk the consequences of what might happen if you aren't wearing a helmet and you are involved in an accident. Then make your own decision whether or not to wear a helmet. I personally always wear one but I see a lot of riders in my little corner of the world who don't. No helmet laws here.

Answer 3

I am strongly for helmets but I agree with you: It's your own head so do as you wish with it.



As for seat belts, that's a horse of a different color. I especially feel that passengers in the back seat should be penalized to the max for refusing to wear a seat belt. Reason being is that the chance of them killing a front passenger with their projected body is far higher than it would be if they were strapped in.



Again, you're right though... to an extent... What would happen to the belted in children if their selfish mother refused to wear her seat belt and was killed because of it? Situations can vary and that is only one but it is very real and could happen.



Anyway, have a nice day!

Answer 4

I'm against all nanny state laws from smoking bans to seat belts, to helmet laws. They are even trying to pass laws that you cant talk on your phone or text while crossing the street. If something your doing puts others in danger I'm all for a law to stop it, however you wearing a helmet is only going to affect you if you crash. I also think it's kind of silly in my state we have seat belt laws but no helmet laws, kinda crazy if you ask me.

Answer 5

I personally wear my full face helmet every time I ride.



I got hit while riding my ten speed by a teen age driver when i was 17. I didn't have a helmet on or nothing, knocked out cold. I was lucky to have no broken bones, only some severe bruising on my hands and right shoulder, some scratches on my face (glasses saved me from much worse), and some stitches on my forehead.



If i had a similar accident on a motorcycle with my safety gear on, wouldn't have had any bruises or cuts as I wear full face helmet and heavy duty leathers. Of course one could argue that the helmet could contribute to a neck injury if it had caught on impact, but who knows.



But getting back to the original question.



I think it's a good thing for minors. I think it should be recommended for adults. But as others pointed out, every one should have sufficient medical insurance to cover any potential injury they should incur in an accident.

Answer 6

I feel that it should be your choice. This goes for helmets and seat belts. I personally don't wear a seat belt, and I don't wear a helmet unless the state in which I'm traveling has a law.

Answer 7

Having seen the results of many motorcycle accidents I will never ride a bike without a helmet or protective gear. I'm not over conservative i just like to be alive.

However and this is the reel rub!

if you check the manufacturers details and the government laws they only have to protect your head up-to 18mph.

most motorbike helmets are a waste of time over 18mph.

That is not to say that they don't protect you or that they won't make some difference but basically what would have been a fatal blow at 18mph would no longer be fatal if you wore a helmet; though you could still be severely injured or suffered brain death or brain injury.

SNELL test SHARP test or plain old BS Kit standard approval are a must but the effect is exponentially low as the speed increases.

Answer 8

each and every thing you do has some form of inherent possibility. i in my view positioned on a helmet on longer journeys, regardless of if as quickly as I’m in simple terms bopping around city i do no longer continuously have the lid on. i found out I do have an inclination to journey greater aggressively as quickly as I do positioned on a helmet. I rather have had acquaintances that have been killed wearing helmets as nicely as without, it’s a gamble you're taking every time you slip your legs over seat and journey off. enable people who journey settle on is the motto I equivalent to. This decision comes right down to what you're tender with, I in simple terms won't push my perspectives on others on in the event that they might desire to or shouldn't positioned on a helmet.

Answer 9

I think helmets are kind of like cigarettes; individuals under the age of 18 should be protected, but let legal adults make their own decisions with their own health. If you are an adult, you know exactly what risks you are taking by not wearing a helmet, but if you accept those risks, who is anyone else to stop you from enjoying your ride?

Answer 10

i feel same way should be your choice i wear both also and your right.. No law should inhibit a persons right to choose and that going with anything sure it might save a life sure they work in doing that kind of like gun control laws only help the bad guys not the good ones since good guys dont shoot or rob people maybe of outr laws are a joke like you can get more time for kicking a dog than if you kick a person if you kil someone they put you in jail for life but then feel you and teach you anything you want to learn for free which cost you more i think we need to start over and get rid of a few lawyers and law makers

Answer 11

I always wear a helmet even though I'm not required to by law. I belong to motorcyclist rights groups, so my money goes toward fighting helmet laws. But to be totally honest, I wish I could force my friends and loved ones to wear helmets.



I don't have any problems with seat belt laws.

Answer 12

I'm not a fan of forcing people to wear helmets, but I also don't like having unhelmeted riders driving up insurance rates, or uninsured riders getting their care paid for by the governement and then recieving Social Security for just being stupid.

Answer 13

If you worked in health care and constantly saw the results of not wearing seat belts or a helmet, you wouldn't be asking this. The sad fact is we all end up shouldering the costs involved of caring for people injured by "choosing" not to use them.

Answer 14

"Helmet laws save lives."



This is a true statement. Helmet laws lower the number of motorcyclists and thus lower the motorcycle death rate.



Motorcycle helmet laws are pushed by the automobile insurance companies since in a motorcycle-automobile accident it is generally the automobile driver's fault and it is the automobile insurance company that is paying for any damages/injuries. By reducing the number of motorcyclists, the automobile insurance companies save money.



"Helmets save lives."



This is not a true statement. *IF* helmets saved lives then the death rate per motorcycle accident would be lower in those States that mandate the wearing of a motorcycle helmet. The truth is that States with mandatory helmet laws have an insignificantly higher death rate per motorcycle accident.



"While i normally hate the government telling us all what to do, the big deal here is that when somebody is hurt/killed on a bike without wearing safety gear, we all end up paying for it."



It does NOT matter whether or not people wear helmets/safety gear. The accident rate and death rates are very similar -- with the Helmet Optional States actually having the advantage. Safety gear allows people to take greater risks and the use of safety gear is actually associated with an increase in accidents and injuries.



If you want to save public money, ban motorcycles altogether, along with any vehicle capable of exceeding 45 mph.

Answer 15

It may be your choice, but think of the pain it causes their families, the amount of care they need when they enter a trauma facility and can't afford so their families pay if there is no insurance. I think it should be mandatory. If you get on a bike you wear a helmet or you get pulled over and potentially have your license taken away.

Answer 16

I think that motorcyclists should be self-policing on this. But I'd like to see just as much emphasis on cagers seeing us in the first place by PAYING ATTENTION and putting their cellphones away, and their makeup, and their coffee, and their maps and morning paper while driving.

Answer 17

as a taxpayer I am sick and tired of paying for the medical care of the stupid that are too stupid to protect themselves

why should I pay for the medical bills and the workman's comp and welfare benefits for someone that was careless not wearing a helmet!

I believe tough and strict helmet laws should be in place an approved full face helmet, and proper riding clothing and hard sole boots, no shorts, no hanging out tee shirts, and no thong shoes!

Answer 18

I wear one, even in NH and RI (no helmet laws). I've seen what pavement did to my helmet and would prefer it didn't happen to my face.



I would agree with you on the individuals right to choose IF their brain damage didn't effect MY insurance premium.

Answer 19

I don't think the government should be used to control individual behavior to this extent. It wastes their time and resources. There are far more important issues they need to address.



I don't think much of people who champion this kind of thing either.

Answer 20

i ride and guess what the guy driving the convertable dont even wear his seat belt

Answer 21

helmets themselve arent bad,but the freedom of choice is what this country was founded on!

Answer 22

My general view is your head, your choice. I choose to wear a helmet.



However, if someone else runs into you and you suffer head injuries, I don't think they should be liable for the injuries you suffer by choosing to not wear the helmet.

Answer 23

As an adult it should be my right to make my own decisions and then live with the consequences of them. I carry and pay for my own insurance, I am not on the gov. dole. So that gives lie to the public burden theory.

Please note I said as an adult. Children are a different story.

Answer 24

personally, i dont like seatbelts in cars, they make me feel almost trapped, but when i ride my motorbike, i am more then happy to wear my helmet.

i have crashed my ped 2 times now, and on both occasions i am glad to be wearing a helmet, if i hadnt of done, i wouldnt be writing this.

Answer 25

While i normally hate the government telling us all what to do, the big deal here is that when somebody is hurt/killed on a bike without wearing safety gear, we all end up paying for it.



We end up paying for it in the insurance premiums, and we end up paying for medicare/medicaid.



What percentage of riders are willing and able to cough up $100k cash for their medical treatment in the event they get sent to the hospital? Practically zero. Its all of us that get to pay for their "choice".



If it was their choice, and it never affected the rest of us, then sure. Do what you want. But i don't want to pay for somebody's lifeless vegetable body on life support just because they were too cool to wear their gear.

Answer 26

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