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Motorcycle Accident Lawyer Blog
Friday, February 6, 2009
Helmet Laws: Some Pros and Cons
There is an online poll on the topic of whether helmets should be required for all bike riders. Being a hot topic, it has 230 comments posted so far. Here is a summary of the arguments put forth.
In Favor of Helmet Laws
- Just as everyone in a car must wear a seatbelt, so every biker should wear a helmet.
- Helmets save lives and protect the less skilled riders.
- If a vehicle driver is in an accident with a bike rider and the biker is killed, the driver will have that death on his/her conscience for life and that isn't fair.
- It isn't fair to other drivers to create traffic backups by being in an accident without a helmet, being killed, and thereby causing an accident investigation.
- Helmet laws would help to keep insurance rates down.
Against Helmet Laws
- It should be a matter of personal choice. In places with no laws many people wear helmets anyway if they judge it to be safer.
- A helmet law would be the beginning of endless government meddling. Next would be a law requiring full-face helmets; then a law requiring neck braces; then one for spinal armor to prevent broken backs. Then it would be illegal to wear shorts or any clothing which didn't meet some government standard or other …
- People drive convertibles without wearing helmets and ride in school buses without seatbelts. So why shouldn't bikers ride without helmets?
- Motorcyclists are the most skilled and attentive operators on the road. Bikers should not have to suffer a helmet because of the inattentive driving of passenger vehicles.
- Helmets reduce your range of vision, block your hearing and overheat your head, all of which makes you less in control of your riding.
Only four states have no helmet law whatever. Twenty states have mandatory helmet laws for all ages. Twenty-four states have helmet laws for riders over specified ages. Two states have laws with both age and insurance requirements. You can see a color-coded map at the Bikers’ Rights site and links to pages on each state.
If you have been badly injured in a motorcycle accident and need some legal assistance, please contact the law firm of Hardesty Tyde Green & Ashton, P.A. in Jacksonville, Florida.
posted by JennyK at 2:01 PM
2 Comments:
There will NEVER be an end to the helmet law debate. But debating has absolutely no effect on whether there is a helmet law. None.
The only helmet statistic that matters is how the legislature votes on helmet laws. A majority silences all other arguments.
As long as bikers are distracted by the debate, they will never win. There are too many non-riders, and among them too many know-it-alls. But again, winning the debate has no effect on the law.
"Bikers for Bill Sponsors" has only one mission, and that is to end universal helmet laws. And the way they do it is by building a legislative majority. With the fewest people and the least amount of time and effort ... but with unstoppable results.
If you want to spend less time fighting the helmet law, and more time enjoying your freedom, check us out. We're at www.b4bs.net.
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