A Survey On Motorcycle Helmets Legal Guidelines



Since July 2000, motorcycle riders have not had to abide by a universal helmet law, wanting all riders, irrespective of age, to wear a helmet when operating their motorcycles. Now, Florida helmet regulations stipulate that riders over the age of 21 that have a minimum of $10,000 in health coverage can legally ride their bikes without putting on a helmet, a move that was considered a victory by several riders disappointed with universal helmet laws which had been in effect until that time.

Whether or not the move implies a clear victory or not is reliant on interpretation. While riders can enjoy the road unencumbered by motorcycle helmets that are generally weighty and hot, a report by the Florida Department of Transportation indicates that motorcycle injuries and also fatalities have risen following repeal of the universal laws, prompting certain state authorities to reconsider the law.

The debate over universal helmet laws has not been confined to Florida. Throughout the nation, universal helmet requirements have met with active opposition, and recently, several nations have taken off universal helmet laws entirely, while other impose specific age or insurance rules that govern who should put on a helmet, and who can choose not to wear a helmet.

Before 1966, there were no motorcycle helmet regulations in any country. But the Highway Safety Act of that same year put an end to that, requiring the establishment of uniform safety programs for bikers across the country. Under this act, all nations were required to develop and implement laws which mandated the use of helmets by all bike riders. States that turned down to enact such legal guidelines faced losing s portion of federal government highway construction funds.

In 1975, with fees and penalties pending against three states, Congress revisited the Highway Safety Act, and eradicated the helmet law mandate, and also disallowing a suspension of federal funds from states without universal helmet laws. The result: by 1978, 25 countries had repealed their legal guidelines, or amended them to incorporate only certain groups, generally individuals under the age of 18.

The 1980s was, overall, a period of stasis for helmet laws. However in the late 1980s and 1990s, several states began reenacting helmet laws in order to lessen injuries and deaths, and decrease insurance and medical costs. In 1989, Oregon and Texas once again enforced universal helmet regulations, and Washington and Maryland followed suit in 1990 and 1992. Even California, which had never before enacted a helmet law, passed a universal helmet law in 1992 after much hype. Florida also passed a helmet law, but in 1996 as noted, the law was amended that include only riders under 21 and those without adequate insurance coverage.

The repeal immediately observed a marked change in helmet use in the country. As observational helmet use survey conducted by the state DOT in 1998 discovered 99.5 percent of motorcycle riders wore helmets. A similar survey conducted in 2002, two years following the repeal of the universal helmet law, indicated that rate had dropped to 52.7 percent.

Another study conducted by the Florida DOT also discovered that though the overall number of crashes reduced during the 18-month period after the law was repealed as compared to the 19-month period prior to repeal, deadly crashes among the state's motorbike riders increased by approximately 43 percent after Florida helmet legal guidelines were revised, from 284 deaths in the 18-month period before repeal, to 404 fatalities in the 18-month period following repeal. Non-fatal accidental injuries elevated by about 16 percent in the same period. Even the numbers of under-age riders elevated after repeal of the law, from 7 percent to 11 percent.

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