MOTOR CYCLE HELMETS

[rosievictoria]

Dr Dave-you may be able to help me on this one.
Why do only a few people wear helmets in Hua Hin and surrounding areas?.
And when the driver wears a helmet no pillion passengers do?.
Do they think when they fall off the driver is the only one injured.
Is it the cost of helmets?
Maybe someone could paint exciting designs on the helmets and then everyone would want one.
Sort of a fashion statement as well as preventing serious hear injurys.

rosievictoria

[rosievictoria]

Sorry People
I meant head injurys not hear injurys
rosievictoria

[Big Boy]

RosieV,

I don't think its the appearance of the helmet, its the heat inside that puts people off.

Personally I don't ride bikes (see thread on Motorbike Passenger Weight), but my family do. They always complain when its getting near the payday of the men in brown suits because they're out trying to summplement their income until payday. Family members always return home with quite a sweat on.

Regarding passengers, the Thai law does not require pillion passengers to wear a helmet.

[dr dave soul monsta]

Any one who does not wear any head protection whilst riding a motorcycle is a fool to them selves
Full stop !

this subject has been covered in many threads including graphic images of aftermath of accidents

[Big Boy]

Dr Dave,

I wasn't trying to condone the non-wearing of helmets. I was simply trying to answer the question - 'why'

I totally agree with you

Any one who does not wear any head protection whilst riding a motorcycle is a fool to them selves

I worry everytime members of my family flout the law.

[JW]

Imagine how much money would be saved if everyone had to wear a proper helmet - not the plastic things. How many lives would be saved and serious injuries for the sake of a 1000 baht helmet. I remember those pics Davbe posted earlier in the year and they were horrific.

[dr dave soul monsta]

Dr Dave,

I wasn't trying to condone the non-wearing of helmets. I was simply trying to answer the question - 'why'

I totally agree with you
Quote:
Any one who does not wear any head protection whilst riding a motorcycle is a fool to them selves
I worry everytime members of my family flout the law.

I think basically its a severe lack education in road saftey and regard for personal life as well as others

and unless you have a kevlar / fibreglass helemt i would NOT recomend painting the thing the chemicals in the paint will attack the structure of a plastic helemt making it a total waste of time

the other thread is here

http://www.huahinafterdark.com/forum/vi ... ying+alive

just to refresh the short minded folk on the forum

[lomuamart]

Are posters sure that the pillion rider dosn't have to wear a helmet? I thought that they did have to by law, but it's just not enforced in HH or elsewhere. Other than BKK.
A reason I've been given is that there isn't enough money for most folk to afford two - as the OP asked.
I'd like to know "the law" on this.
Just interested, I'm not going out there to nick people.

[Norseman]

Agree with you lomu.
I think the law is quite clear that the pillion rider must wear a helmet too.
The men in brown does not know this or they don't care about it in Hua Hin.

[olmate]

Maybe, just maybe no infact im sure most thai people cant afford a decent helmet, and when i say decent i dont mean a styrofoam bowl with some plastic molded around it.
Thai people arnt stupid, they dont need a helmet painted to make them wear one, it isnt disneyland and im sure there use to the heat.
If you had a limited income and had to choose between feeding your family for a few weeks or buying a helmet, what would you do?
It is sad but most thais dont live in the so-called cotten wool wrapped ideal world that the majority of us westerners do and until they catch up to our perfect western society i guess they'll keep on getting about with no helmet.

[SHADOW]

Waiting for a reply from MAG. Personally I think it's a personnel choice. Yes 100% helmets save lives, but these helmets must be of a high standard Poly-carbon are OK and are going to cost about 3-5 thou. Fibreglass helmets cost between 8 and 20 thou. So Thais don't wear them it costs too much. The fashion statement helps to sell helmets, you don't see western bike riders wearing to many plain crash helmets.

The bike companies are like tobacco they want to sell their product what happens to you after that doesn't matter. All the shops give you a helmet that even Captain Scarlet wouldn't wear, the Bkk post reported that there are at least 3.5 million substandard crash helmets on the roads.


If the poor can't afford them then it's the government's job to help protect the people by subsidising the cost.

Now everybody knows this is never going to happen, being poor is the 21st centuries greatest get out clause

I can't afford a helmet, but I can afford a bike.

[Teabone]

With regards to 'why' there is a lack of helmet use, affordability is no doubt an issue, but I have lost count of the amount of times I have seen a Thai rider reach into the basket, don a helmet, pass through a juction where the police are, then return the helmet to its home - the basket.
In addition to this, everyday you can see (usually) young Thai males wearing expensive full face helmets, wrong way around and not covering their faces, let alone with the straps fastened. This suggests to me that cost is only a minor factor (at least for some, for others it is significant) - the main factor being as Dr Dave has already said - a lack of education regarding the consequencies.
A good start might be for the men in brown to regard their role in this matter as proctectors and educators for road saftey - not as has already been said - providing a nice little earner before pay day.

[Teabone]

Almost forgot - it might also help if the Thais were able to witness helmet use by falang, but sadly this will come about at the same time as the police switch direction on their roles.
I am not going to be holding my breath waiting for either.

[jacorvy]

Road safety just isn't a serious issue in LOS, you'll find that most Thais leave their fate in the hands of Buddha. The boys in brown only enforce the law when they need to supplement their income and don't even try to enforce it in the evenings.

[Kraka's Dad]

Oh yes the do !!!!
Have seen them pulling over cyclists many times in the evening for not having a helmet on !!
For whatever reason they do it it does make sense to wear a helmet at all times !!!!!