AIBU to think that children should wear helmets whilst scooting

[Talkwhilstyouwalk]

Most children I see riding bikes wear a helmet, but loads of children on scooters do not! Is riding a bike considered more dangerous than riding a scooter? AIBU to think that my (otherwise very sensible) friends who let their children scoot to school without a helmet are risking their children's safety? I get that helmets can be a faff and wearing one messes up my daughters hair, but I'm very firm that if she refuses to wear her helmet then she's walking! Bit embarrassed that we had a showdown about this in front of another mum who lets her child scoot helmet free.

[idontlikealdi]

Always helmets here bikes, scooters skiing and horses. Having it non negotiable across the four just makes it easier.

And it costs a bloody fortune in helmets.

[changeruset2748]

YANBU I don't let mine on bikes or scooters without a helmet. I judge every parent with a child on one without a helmet, of which there are many, unfortunately.

[oohmama]

I don't understand how people can let their children on scooters / bikes without one to be honest.

This

Blows my mind

To be fair, my sister works for a brain injury charity and has seen the worst outcomes of scooter injuries so....

[lanthanum]

What worries me about scooters is windy days. If you've ever seen a child on a scooter caught by a gust and propelled suddenly much faster, you'd agree - they could be in front of a car before you have any chance of stopping them. I think our scooter did actually have something in the instructions about only using in good weather, but I doubt many people take any notice.

[Pongo101]

YANBU. My daughter recently had a horrific scooter accident that landed us in A&E. If she hadn't been wearing a helmet, it would have been much worse.

She wasn't looking where she was going, hit a steep kerb, went flying head first over the handle bars.

[MuddySocks]

Absolutely helmets should always be worn.

I don't understand how people can let their children on scooters / bikes without one to be honest.

[Emmelina]

Mine have all had some really nasty tumbles from the scooter. It’s not through carelessness on their parts, a bit of speed down a hill and a rogue bit of gravel and over they go! No helmet, no wheels here.
Sure, they probably wouldn’t build that kind of momentum at 3 on a little micro scooter, but when do you get them into the habit? From day one.

[JeanClaudeVanDammit]

Most climbing frames have a softer surface than a pavement underneath. It’s more dangerous than walking or running because they can go a lot faster on a scooter than they can walk or run.

I like the suggestion that it’s just a middle class concern though and it’s only the parents of little darlings from St Albans who want to avoid head injuries

[FedNlanders]

Climbing frames are not next to the road either.

[Talkwhilstyouwalk]

@JemimaJoy

Do your children wear helmets on climbing frames too? Much more dangerous than scooters imo.

No but I try to avoid big ones where possible 😂

[Singlebutmarried]

The only two times we’ve ended up in a and e with the child have been helmetless scooter related injuries, first time concussion (came off backwards) and second time split eyebrow after catching a wheel in a divot in the pavement.

Definitely wear a helmet.

[FedNlanders]

Mine age 8 and 4 have to wear helmets on scooters.

[NewPapaGuinea]

If what was true? When I say wearing a seatbelt I mean the habit of putting it on. I don’t think it should be a legal requirement.

[NoIDontWatchLoveIsland]

I make mine wear helmets. Just kind of on principal. As they get older and start using bikes and scooters on ramps and near roads I want helmet wearing to be deeply ingrained and automatic.

[Lulu1919]

My children always wore their cycling helmets when on scooters .

[JemimaJoy]

Do your children wear helmets on climbing frames too? Much more dangerous than scooters imo.

[JemimaJoy]

Scooters are nowhere neat as dangerous as bikes. They are slower, easier to jump off etc. Even I wouldn't make my child wear a helmet scooting and I'm a pretty anxious person! My kids have no problem wearing one on a bike tho, they love helmets weirdly.

[PinkElephant7]

@SnackSizeRaisin I'm so with you! Walking/running just as unsafe but no helmet required. Its the perception that wheels are unsafe. And yet total disillusion when it comes to cars.

[LabiaMinoraPissusFlapus]

I think it is over the top, and teaching children to be overly cautious. I have noticed it is a very middle class thing, and have encountered what I perceive to be snobbery about 'no helmet no wheels'! I have spent a lot of time in North London, St Albans and Hitchin though!

[diamondpony80]

DD goes extremely fast on her scooter and has fallen off (skidded off the edge of the kerb), so yes, definitely helmets for us.

[beefest]

Always! My DC's know they don't go out the door with their bikes or scooters without a helmet on and they're both teens/late teens. It's always been a rule in our house and I never need to ask them to put it on as they just do it. The amount of kids I see in my area on bikes, without helmets is crazy. I don't understand why parents wouldn't want their DC's to wear them!

[Looooona]

I’m a nanny and totally prefer children to wear helmets when on scooters but parents do not seem to encourage it. I worked in Canada and all parents made children wear helmets on scooters. Then I moved here and the first time I took a British child out on a scooter she had a tantrum because I made her wear a helmet, when the mum got home she said i was being unreasonable. However, if I’d have let a child on a scooter in Canada without a helmet I probably would have been fired. I think why not just make them wear helmets, we do for most other non-motorised things (roller blades, skateboards)

[mightbealittlebitmad]

Mine wears a helmet 99% of the time on his scooter, always on the school run and most of the time pootling around outside the house but there has been the odd occasion he hasn't.

He still managed to mash his face in wearing a helmet and his little brother did the same on his bike with a helmet on so it's always wise to make them wear one.

I never did and I am incredibly lucky I never did any damage. I used to do some stupid stuff on my rollerblades/bike without a helmet and it's amazing I survived.

[Talkwhilstyouwalk]

@Thebookswereherfriends

www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/head-trauma-broken-bones-spinal-1884655
Incidences are obviously lower, but the injuries can be just as severe as on a bike. If your kid is used to wearing a helmet on a bike it’s really no more difficult to get them to wear one on a scooter.

'And this year so far, the children’s Major Trauma Centre has treated as many serious injuries related to scooters as bicycles.'

Wow 😮!!

[LimaFoxtrotCharlie]

@SnackSizeRaisin

It's a personal decision but helmets are not a panacea. They are unlikely to be of any use if you get hit by a car and they are a strangulation risk if worn on climbing frames. Cycling and scooting are generally safe activities, it seems a bit irrational to me to insist on a helmet for all scooting on cycling but not use one for walking, running or in the car, where head injuries also frequently occur. It does depend on the type of activity as obviously slow scooting from a to b has a lower risk of falling off than mountain biking or doing stunts. But helmet wearing may make someone less careful as they think they are safe, thereby increasing the risk. The extra weight of the helmet also increases the forces on the neck in an accident and makes it more likely that the head hits the ground. These factors are even more if an issue in very young children. Enforced helmet wearing might put young people off cycling or scooting which is going to be more detrimental overall than the tiny risk of a significant head injury. Plus a helmet is no use unless it fits properly. Many children seem to wear them pushed right back on their head which is likely to lead to neck injuries and doesn't protect against forehead injuries which are the most common. The front of the helmet should be just above the eyebrows and stay on without needing the strap.
Yes there are circumstances where I would enforce wearing a helmet, but it's a risk benefit analysis rather than a no brainer. (See what I did there)
The benefits are not proven, which is different to the situation with seat belts or extended rear facing cat seats for example, which have a strong evidence base behind them

Excellent post