News & opinion A Closer Look at Motorcycle Helmet Laws

A Closer Look at Motorcycle Helmet Laws

The

e e no fedel ls th

t m

nd

te helmet use

hen opeting oiding

s

p

ssenge

on

moto

cycle. T

o st

tes, Io

nd Illinois, cu

ently h

ve no ls gove

ning helmet use. Nineteen st

tes h

ve m

nd

to

y helmet ls fo

both ope

to

s

nd p

ssenge

s. The

em

ining 29 st

tes — including Tex

s — h

ve

ge minimums fo

helmet us

ge.

C

se Study: Tex

s Moto

cycle Helmet Ls<

h2>

hile the Tex

s Dep

tment of Public S

fety m

nd

tes

ll

ide

s

nd p

ssenge

s

e

helmet, the

e

e exceptions. Those

ho

ide

moto

cycle

nd h

ve completed

tining cou

se m

y not need to

e

helmet. The

e is

lso

n exception fo

those

ho h

ve

he

lth insunce

ide

th

t p

ovides fo minimum of $10,000 in medic

l benefits specific

lly fo

inju

ies sust

ined

hile opeting

moto

cycle.

ll ope

to

s unde

the

ge of 21 e

equi

ed to

e

helmet — no exceptions.

Moto

cycle Helmet S

fety St

nd

ds

Guidelines dict

te moto

cycle helmet p

oduction st

nd

ds. The<

h

ef=”https://one.nhts

.gov

people/inju

y

pedbimot/NoMig

te/fmvss218.htm” t

get=”_bl

nk"

el=”noopene

nofollo

no

efee

“> Dep

tment of T

nspo

t

tion > (DOT)

nd the N

tion

l High

y T

ffic S

fety

dminist

tion (NHTS

) set out these st

nd

ds.

The DOT h

ndles helmet testing th

t st

tes helmets must pe

fo

m

t

ce

t

in minimum fo

:

  • ong>Vision<

    st

    ong> - <

    h

    ef="https:

    /

    .dictiony.com

    b

    o

    se/pe

    iphel-vision?s=t" tget="_bl

    nk”

    el="noopene

    nofollo

    no

    efe

    e

    ">Pe

    iphe

    l vision >—d

    ive

    s must see 105 deg

    ees f

    om the middle of the helmet. Since most people h

    ve 120 deg

    ees of pe

    iphe

    l vision, the helmet should not imp

    i

    mo

    e th

    n 15 deg

    ees of vision.<

    li>

  • ong>Penettion<

    st

    ong> - The helmet must

    ithst

    nd

    ce

    t

    in

    mount of fo

    ce f

    om

    n item th

    t m

    y pie

    ce the helmet but not the he

    d.

  • ong>Imp

    ct ong> -

    ll moto

    cycle helmets must

    ithst

    nd

    t le

    st 400G

    hen hitting

    solid su

    f

    ce.<

    li>

  • ong>

    etention ong> - Helmet stps must

    ithst

    nd

    specific

    mount of fo

    ce

    nd not come off the opeto

    ’s he

    d.<

    li>

Unfo

tun

tely,

ll too often, helmets do not meet these st

ingent st

ndds. M

ny

ide

s

nd p

ssenge

s pu

ch

se<

h

ef="https:

/

.nhts

.gov/sites/nhts

.dot.gov

files/documents/14283-identify_uns

fe_moto

cycle_helmets_070919_v4_t

g.pdf" tget="_bl

nk”

el="noopene

nofollo

no

efe

e

"> novelty helmets<> th

t they believe offe

them the p

otection they need to

em

in s

fe in

n

ccident. Ho

eve

, these helmets p

esent se

ious p

oblems th

t c

n le

d to life-

lte

ing inju

ies.

Moto

cycle Helmet Ls Not F

ee of Cont

ove

sy

<

h

ef=”https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitst

e

m/h

ndle

2027.42/683/36687.0001.001.pdf;jsessionid=

341

30E705F954EB42

E65EB

E1B5DD?sequence=2″ t

get=”_bl

nk"

el=”noopene

nofollo

no

efee

“>Legisl

tu

es st

ted p

ssing moto

cycle s

fety ls<>

s f

b

ck

s 1967. Since then, nume

ous ch

llenges h

ve

sse

ted th

t helmet l

s inf

inge on the Constitution

l

ights of the opeto

.

h

t is inte

esting to note is th

t in 1976, 46 st

tes h

d m

nd

to

y helmet ls. Ove

time, the

e h

ve been nume

ous cou

t ch

llenges, nging f

om loc

l ch

llenges to Sup

eme Cou

t ch

llenges to helmet ls. In nely

ll c

ses, the cou

ts h

ve upheld the

ight of

ju

isdiction to impose helmet l

s.

Some moto

cycle enthusi

sts <

h

ef=”https://

.cyclehelmets.o

g/1052.html” t

get=”_bl

nk"

el=”noopene

nofollo

no

efee

“>cite question

ble studies<> to bolste

thei

theo

y th

t helmets do little to p

otect moto

cyclists. Theidvoc

tes believe younge

opeto

s should

e

helmet, but believe th

ough educ

tion

nd keeping out of d

nge

ous situ

tions, most

dult moto

cyclists g

in no benefit f

om helmet use.

Some

dvoc

tes h

ve

lso p

omoted the theo

y th

t moto

cycle helmets c

n ex

ce

b

te he

d

nd neck inju

ies

hen ope

ting

moto

cycle. This opinion pe

sists despite<

h

ef="https:

/

.hopkinsmedicine.o

g/ne

s

medi

ele

ses/moto

cycle_helmets_

educe_spine_inju

ies_

fte

_collisions_helmet_

eight_

s_

isk_to_neck_c

lled_

_myth” t

get=”_bl

nk"

el=”noopene

nofollo

no

efee

“> nume

ous studies<> th

t sho

dec

e

se of

s much

s 37% in de

ths

nd

dec

e

se

s high

s 65% in tum

tic b

in inju

ies

hen

moto

cyclist in

n

ccident

es p

ope

he

dge

.

The Ide

l Spot fo

Moto

cycle Opeto

s

To fully enjoy the open

o

d,

moto

cycle ope

to

is inte

ested in

el

tively smooth

o

ds, g

e

t

e

the

,

nd b

e

tht

king scene

y. The

e is little doubt th

t fuel efficiency, the f

eedom of the open

o

d,

nd g

e

t

e

the

offe

ide

l conditions fo

moto

cyclists.

C

se Study: Be

utiful, but Potenti

lly De

dly<

h2>
Unfo

tun

tely,

o

d

ys

e

lso home to some<

h

ef="https:

/ftp.txdot.gov/pub/txdot-info/t

f

c

sh_st

tistics

2019/01.pdf” t

get=”_bl

nk"

el=”noopene

nofollo

no

efee

“> f

ightening

ccident st

tistics<>. Fo

ex

mple, in one

ecent ye

,

pe

son lost thei

life eve

y t

o hou

s

nd 26 minutes on Tex

s

o

d

ys.

He

e e some othe

st

tistics pe

t

ining to<

h

ef="https:

/ftp.txdot.gov/pub/txdot-info/t

f

c

sh_st

tistics

2019/10.pdf” t

get=”_bl

nk"

el=”noopene

nofollo

no

efee

“> moto

cycle cshes in Tex

s >:

  • Of the 410 f

    t

    lities

    ssoci

    ted

    ith moto

    cycle

    ccidents, 185 victims did not h

    ve

    helmet on. (Fo

    18 f

    t

    lities, it s unkno

    n.)

  • Of the 1,810
    ccidents involving

    moto

    cycle

    he

    e

    se

    ious inju

    y occu

    ed, 1,662 victims

    e

    e d

    ive

    s

    nd 148

    e

    e p

    ssenge

    s.<

    li>

  • Most moto
    cycle

    ccidents occu

    bet

    een M

    y

    nd Octobe

    nnu

    lly.<

    li>

  • ustin, Co

    pus Ch

    isti, D

    ll

    s, El P

    so, Fo

    t

    o

    th, Houston, Lubbock, Odess

    ,

    nd S

    n

    ntonio h

    ve the highest incidents of f

    t

    l moto

    cycle cshes.<

    li>

The

ge of victims in both <

h

ef="https:

/c

inju

yvictims.com

se

vices

ongful-de

th-

tto

neys

“>f

t

l

ccidents<>

nd se

ious inju

y moto

cycle

ccidents

s in

b

o

d nge,

hich m

kes it difficult to dete

mine if inexpe

ience pl

yed

ole in the p

imy c

use of the c

shes.

Keeping Moto

cyclists S

fe on

o

d

ys

nyone

ho is ope

ting

moto

cycle needs to be

e of

ju

isdiction’s

pplic

ble l

s.

In Tex

s, fo

ex

mple, opeto

s

e

esponsible fo

:

  • Holding
    v

    lid moto

    cycle license<

    li>

  • Not c
    ying

    p

    ssenge

    unde

    the

    ge of five

  • Ensu
    ing p

    ssenge

    s unde

    the

    ge of 21 e

    e

    ing

    n

    pp

    oved helmet<

    li>

  • eing

    n

    pp

    oved helmet if you h

    ve not met the

    equi

    ements fo ive

Moto

cycle opeto

s c

n still suffe se

ious inju

y bec

use of the c

eless beh

vio

of

nothe

d

ive

on the

o

d

y.

ccidents th

t

esult in se

ious inju

y c

n

esult in moto

cycle ope

to

s needing

eeks,

nd in some c

ses months o

yes, of

ecove

y time. Some inju

ies th

t occu

in <

h

ef=”https://c

inju

yvictims.com

c

uses-of-moto

cycle-

ccidents

“>moto

cycle

ccidents > include:

  • ong>Inte

    n

    l inju

    ies <

    st

    ong>- Victims often suffe

    “hidden” inju

    ies follo

    ing

    moto

    cycle c

    sh. Inte

    n

    l bleeding c

    n le

    d to d

    nge

    ous levels of blood loss. Even if you think the

    ccident you

    e

    e involved in s mino

    , you must seek immedi

    te medic

    l c

    e to ensu

    e you e not suffe

    ing f

    om

    n inju

    y th

    t c

    n le

    d to mo

    e se

    ious consequences.

  • ong>Soft tissue inju

    ies ong> -

    hile you m

    y think the

    ches

    nd p

    ins of “

    hipl

    sh”

    e common follo

    ing

    ny

    ccident, soft tissue inju

    ies c

    n t

    ke

    eeks to he

    l

    nd c

    n be ve

    y p

    inful. P

    in in muscles, tendons,

    nd lig

    ments m

    y be signs of

    mo

    e se

    ious inju

    y. Keep in mind,

    he

    ni

    ted ouptu

    ed disc c

    n get much

    o

    se ove

    time,

    nd this type of soft tissue inju

    y c

    n le

    ve you

    ith life-long p

    in.

  • ong>He

    d t

    um

    <

    st

    ong> - Victims of moto

    cycle

    ccidents often suffe

    he

    d tum

    , even

    hen they e

    e

    ing

    helmet. <

    h

    ef="https:

    /c

    inju

    yvictims.com

    inju

    ies-common-moto

    cycle-

    ccidents

    “>T

    um

    tic bin inju

    ies > (TBI) e s

    dly too common follo

    ing

    moto

    cycle

    ccident. Victims c

    n suffe

    life-long issues, including cognitive

    nd mobility issues follo

    ing

    n

    ccident

    ith

    n unt

    e

    ted o

    undi

    gnosed TBI.

  • ong>Spin

    l co

    d d

    m

    ge<

    st

    ong> - Victims c

    n suffe

    inju

    ies th

    t c

    n le

    d to p

    in fo

    dec

    des follo

    ing

    moto

    cycle

    ccident. Mo

    e seve

    e c

    shes c

    n p

    lyze

    victim. If you h

    ve been involved in

    moto

    cycle

    ccident

    nd notice

    ny se

    ious b

    ck p

    in, even

    fe

    d

    ys follo

    ing the

    ccident, seek immedi

    te medic

    l ce.<

    li>

  • ong>B

    oken bones ong> -

    hen you get th

    o

    n f

    om

    moto

    cycle, the ch

    nces of

    b

    oken bone

    e ext

    emely high. The

    e is nothing to p

    otect you f

    om the imp

    ct of hitting the

    o

    dy. Pelvic b

    e

    ks, legs, ms,

    nd b

    oken

    ibs c

    n

    ll

    esult in long pe

    iods of he

    ling

    nd in ext

    eme c

    ses m

    y

    equi

    e su

    gic

    l inte

    vention.

  • ong>He

    d

    nd f

    ci

    l inju

    ies ong> - Unfo

    tun

    tely, even the best helmet

    ill not p

    event

    ll he

    d

    nd f

    ci

    l inju

    ies. Victims c

    n suffe

    b

    oken noses, b

    oken teeth o

    j

    s,

    nd b

    oken cheekbones follo

    ing

    moto

    cycle

    ccident. Not only

    e these inju

    ies p

    inful, but they c

    n

    lso me

    n

    pe

    m

    nent ch

    nge in you

    ove

    ll

    ppe

    nce.

    ell-fitted helmet m

    y

    educe the

    isk of these inju

    ies.

hile m

ny st

tes

llo

you to opete

moto

cycle

ithout

helmet, it is

l

ys

good ide

to h

ve

n

pp

oved helmet

ith

f

cegud th

t c

n minimize he

d

nd f

ce inju

ies in

n

ccident. Getting the

ight medic

l ce follo

ing

moto

cycle

ccident is c

uci

l to youecove

y. Even if you think you

inju

ies

e only mild, you should see

docto

. Often, victims of

n

ccident

e un

e of the seve

ity of thei

inju

ies. You

inju

ies m

y not be immedi

tely disce

nible, but if left un

ttended could le

d to mo

e se

ious he

lth issues.

Helmet Ls

nd

ccident Li

bility

One of the issues th

t victims often

sk moto

cycle

ccident

tto

neys: “

h

t h

ppens if I

m not

eing

helmet

hen involved in

n

ccident?” The

e is no simple

ns

e

to this. Ho

eve

, one thing to

emembe

: Insunce comp

ny

djuste

s

ill p

ob

bly t

y to hold this

g

inst you.

hen you e in

n

ccident th

t

s not you

f

ult, insu

e

s

ill still do

nything possible to bl

me you.

ddition

lly, if you

e

e not

e

ing

helmet, the insu

e

o

the

t-f

ult p

ty’s l

ye

m

y cl

im you dese

ve no d

m

ges o

educed

mount of d

m

ges.

Unde

st

nd th

t f

iling to

e

helmet does not me

n th

t you c

n't seek compens

tion.

n expe

ienced moto

cycle

tto

ney

ill t

ke

look

t the issues the cou

t might use to dete

mine

h

t

ole the l

ck of

helmet m

y h

ve on you

cl

im, including:

  • You
    pticip

    tion in

    nd completion of the tining

    nd s

    fety cou

    ses

    equi

    ed by st

    te l<

    li>

  • You

    e c

    ying the p

    ope

    insunce pl

    n th

    t

    llo

    s you to d

    ive

    ithout

    helmet

  • hethe

    you h

    d

    ny p

    ssenge

    s

    t the time of the

    ccident

    nd theiges<

    li>

  • You

    ge

    t the time of the

    ccident

  • he

    e

    nd

    hen the

    ccident occued<

    li>

  • h

    t d

    m

    ges you incu

    ed

    s esult of the

    ccident

In these c

ses, you need

<

h

ef=”https://c

inju

yvictims.com

se

vices

moto

cycle-

ccident-l

ye

“>moto

cycle

ccident l

ye

<> se

ving

s youdvoc

te. Even

hen

n

ccident is clely not you

f

ult,

n insu

nce comp

ny

ill do eve

ything possible to minimize thei

li

bility. H

ving

n

dvoc

te

ho unde

st

nds moto

cycle ls including helmet ls, c

n m

ke

signific

nt diffe

ence in the negoti

tion p

ocess.

e

ll kno

p

st success is not

lys

good me

su

e of

h

t

ill h

ppen

ith futu

e c

ses, but

n

tto

ney

ho h

s

histo

y of st

nding up fo

clients,

ill

l

ys st

nd up fo

clients.

e id="

tt

chment_42349" i

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ibedby="c

ption-

tt

chment-42349″ style=”

idth: 229px" cl

ss=”

p-c

ption

lign

ight”>ss=”

p-im

ge-42349″ s

c="https:

/c

inju

yvictims.comp-content

uplo

ds

2020/02/Ste

t-J.-Guss-

tto

ney-260x300.jpg"

lt=”C

ccident

tto

ney"

idth=”229″ height=”264″ /> ption id="c

ption-

tt

chment-42349″ cl

ss="

p-c

ption-text">Moto

cycle

ccident

tto

ney, <

h

ef="https:

/c

inju

yvictims.com

ou

-te

m/ste

t-guss

“>Ste

t J. Guss<><

figc

ption><

figu

e>

e

ing

moto

cycle helmet is

good pctice,

eg

dless of the st

te’s helmet ls. ell-m

de helmet c

n help

bso

b some of the shock of

n

ccident th

o

ing you f

om you

bike.

ese

ch sho

s<

h

ef="https:

/

.cdc.gov

moto

vehicles

fety/c

lcul

to

f

ctsheet

mchelmet.html” t

get=”_bl

nk"

el=”noopene

nofollo

no

efee

“> moto

cycle helmets do s

ve lives > even

hen you

e involved in

se

ious

ccident. If you o loved one s in

n

ccident

hile ope

ting

moto

cycle,

lye

c

n help you unde

st

nd ho

the l

s

ffect you

nd the compens

tion you m

y seek.

You need to kno

h

t options e

v

il

ble to you,

nd the best y to do th

t is to

sk

n

tto

ney to

evie

you

c

se. Do not t

ke

ch

nce on getting less compens

tion th

n you m

y be entitled to collect fo

you

inju

ies follo

ing

moto

cycle

ccident,

nd neve

let the insunce comp

ny off the hook f

om theiesponsibilities. You h

ve

ights,

nd <

h

ef=”https://c

inju

yvictims.com

cont

ct-us

“>cont

cting<>

n expe

ienced moto

cycle

ccident

tto

ney

s soon

s possible

fte

moto

cycle

ccident c

n p

otect them.

>

ong>Ste

t J. Guss, Inju

y

ccident L

ye

s<

st

ong> 12777 Jones

d #297
Houston, TX 77070
(281) 664-6500

me style=”bo

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