UPDATED 11/19/20
Riding a motorcycle is incredibly fun, but it can be difficult and it can be dangerous. With the proper protection of a helmet, however, you can protect yourself and make sure you get to where you are going in one piece. If you are looking to find out more about helmet laws you can look up things like law based articles, legal business articles, and more. Helmet laws are put in place to make certain that people are wearing their helmets and that they are protecting themselves as much as possible.
Until a short time ago, helmets were required by anyone riding or operating a motorcycle. Now, the law states that anyone over the age of 26 does not have to wear a helmet. Scope of law definition tells us that those that are over the age of 26 are not required to wear helmets and if something does happen, you are going to be held responsible for what happened. If you are in an accident and you are not wearing your helmet you may need to talk to a law school grad or to talk to a neck injury law attorney to see what your rights are.
A Missouri bill was recently introduced, and then soon vetoed, by Gov. Mike Parson that would have repealed the current mandatory Missouri motorcycle helmet laws. The proposed bill would have allowed motorcyclists over the age of 18 to ride their motorcycles without wearing a helmet.
The bill was part of a larger transportation bill that covered a large number of topics, like left turns onto one-way streets and rental fees for vehicles. The Missouri motorcycle helmet law 2019 was ultimately vetoed by Parson because he didn’t agree with a different part of the larger proposal.
Many states have begun to repeal mandatory helmet laws, especially with the number of fatal motorcycle accidents dropping 3% in 2017, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Parson has even supported efforts in the past to engage in Missouri helmet law repeals when he was a member of the House and Senate.
However, the transportation bill as a whole was vetoed during the Missouri law review, including the helmet revision law, because Parson didn’t like a specific provision that would have allowed any county, excluding St. Louis and St. Louis County, to suspend a driver’s license if drivers failed to pay fines for minor traffic violations. According to Parson, this provision would be unconstitutional because it didn’t apply to all parts of the state, only specific areas.
This was not the first attempt Missouri residents and lawmakers made to repeal the mandatory helmet law. Bills reached the governor’s desk in both 1999 and 2009, but the appeals were both vetoed.
According to House sponsor Shane Roden, a Republican from Cedar Hill, “I don’t know if we will ever be able to get that across the board, or across the finish line over there again. I don’t know if it’s possible. There’s a lot of bargains and deals that will have to be cut to ever get that close again… We’re on this big criminal-justice-reform kick, why are we wanting to turn people into criminals for not wearing a helmet? I’ve already seen one motorcycle rider not wearing his helmet the other day I passed. They’re just not going to care.”
On the other hand, there are those in favor of keeping the mandatory helmet law — medical experts agree with having these laws in place to prevent skull fractures, hematomas, brain bruising, and other serious head injuries that can result from being in a motorcycle accident without a helmet on. Helmets and other protective headwear are mandatory in a lot of different aspects, like construction, where falls are the number one cause of death. And if you’re wondering how long does a motorbike helmet last, the answer is nearly forever if kept in good condition.
In the United States, Missouri is one of 19 states that currently have laws in place requiring riders to wear helmets. With a PwC forecast showing that about 107 million vehicles will be produced globally in 2020, states continue to make changes to laws regarding vehicles and motorcycles. Many states have laws that cover some riders, like those under the age of 18. So if you were looking for a reason to check out 2019 motorcycle helmet reviews, now is the time.
So as for now, and for the foreseeable future, Missouri motorcyclists will continue to be fined for not wearing a helmet.
The Missouri helmet law 2019 story isn’t over yet. As mentioned above, this is an issue that has been debated almost annually at the Capitol for more than 25 years. And as of June 2020, the Missouri helmet law 2019 debate is still underway.
The provision is still in a large transportation bill that is still currently under review. The most recent Missouri helmet law 2019 provision would allow riders 26 and older to operate a motorcycle without a helmet, if they have both medical insurance and proof of financial responsibility.
Of course, therein lies a problem — how can you tell whether a passing motorcyclist is over 26? Most credible motorcycle dealers might keep records of their sales, but a passing police officer or driver can’t ID someone at speed on a highway. A national highway safety organization is calling on the governor to veto the bill in direct response to the helmet provision for this exact reason.
Will the bill be vetoed again? It seems likely. One thing we know for sure is that the great Missouri helmet law 2019 debate isn’t over yet.
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