We feel strongly that bicycle safety should always be a top priority.  One the of best things you can do for your child to require them to wear a properly fitting helmet when they are participating in any sport on wheels: tricycle or bike riding, riding a scooter or go-kart, roller skating or skateboarding. 

Unfortunately 80-90% of bicycle fatalities were cyclists who were not wearing their helmets.

In 2011, roughly 8,000 children ages 14 and under were injured while riding a bicycle. Most parents ensure their children wear helmets and are careful on primary roadways, but are much more likely to become less stringent about it when their children are riding around the neighborhood. The reality is, that for children (ages 0-19), more than half of all deaths occur on minor roadways. 

Thankfully many states, counties, and cities agree that wearing a helmet can help save lives and have passed laws requiring children to wear bicycle helmets when out on a bicycle.  As of 2013, there are 21 states plus the District of Columbia with statewide helmet laws and at least 16 states with known city or county wide laws requiring children to wear helmets.

 

 

Although most helmet laws require riders age 16 and younger to wear a helmet, the age requirement varies by city or state.  The Bicycle Helmet Safety Institute has a great list of city and county helmet laws and we've presented the state-wide helmet laws below.

 

State	Age
Alabama	<16
Connecticut	<16
Delaware	<18
D.C.	<16
Florida	<16
Georgia	<16
Hawaii	<16
Louisiana	<12
Maine	<16
Maryland	<16
Massachusetts	>1 and <17
New Hampshire	<16
New Jersey	<17
New Mexico	<18
New York	>1 and<14
North Carolina	<16
Oregon	<16
Pennsylvania	<12
Rhode Island	<16
Tennessee	<16
West Virginia	<15

 

Please remember that just because your state or city does not have a law regarding the use of helmets, it is still of the utmost important that your child always wears a helmet.  Putting on a bicycle helmet should only take a few second, but could save your child's life. If your child does not have a helmet or has outgrown theirs, please visit our helmet department to see the many styles and sizes we have available. 

Visit Tikes Bikes today and if you order both a bike AND a helmet, Tikes Bikes will take $5 off your purchase when you use discount code: RIDESMART.

 

Statistics were taken from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.