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.

No helmet = no wheels in our house. The pavements are so uneven and bumpy that the kids fall off all the time and the youngest has gone over the top a few times.

Helmets on scooters here.

(My personal feeling is that pavements are the most dangerous place to ride (except from traffic obviously)... Walls, curbs, uneven pavements, obstacles like people. Lots of opportunities for them to hit something of if they do fall to hit their head. Incidentally, one of my elderDDs three trips to A&E as a two year old was falling over and hitting her head while walking on a pavement....)

In Australia were they made cycle helmets mandatory lots of teens stopped cycling, this had a more significant effect on health than caused by riding without helmets. Essentially enforcing helmets had a negative impact on health.

I personally think scooters for getting from a to b, low risk without helmets; doing tricks at skate park, higher risk, helmets and pads needed.

Mine always has a helmet on when on his scooter. He does go ridiculously fast on that thing though, especially downhill. Saves me stressing 🤷.

I think it's probably less dangerous than cycling without one but my dd(3.5) must wear one and I make my older ones wear them at the skate park but not for scooting to and from school anymore. They don't really build up much more speed scooting than running and they're not on the road.

@ComtesseDeSpair

I don’t think you can fall off a scooter in the same way you fall off a bicycle, can you? Wouldn’t falling from a scooter just be more like tripping when running?

My youngest managed to and was knocked out cold. Ironically he had a helmet on, but decided it was a great idea to adjust it whilst scooting down a hill

When DS was little he did. He is 6 now and doesn't unless he goes to the skate park. Its non negotiable on his bike though.

My two often do not wear them when riding to school. They probably should but the school is 3 minutes away, no busy roads and pretty flat and they don’t go fast. I know theres still a risk though... if we were going further they would!

@wonderstuff

In Australia were they made cycle helmets mandatory lots of teens stopped cycling, this had a more significant effect on health than caused by riding without helmets. Essentially enforcing helmets had a negative impact on health.

I personally think scooters for getting from a to b, low risk without helmets; doing tricks at skate park, higher risk, helmets and pads needed.

Wow, that's really interesting! I guess helmets are considered uncool by teens 😑

I enforce helmets on scooters but it’s a pain in the arse! It does feel like overkill sometimes when I’m with friends who don’t make their kids wear helmets on scooters.

@Buby51

My two often do not wear them when riding to school. They probably should but the school is 3 minutes away, no busy roads and pretty flat and they don’t go fast. I know theres still a risk though... if we were going further they would!

Yes, our school is close and no roads which is why I was wondering if I was being a bit OTT. She does pick up lots of speed on the hill though!

@Veggiepotamus

I enforce helmets on scooters but it’s a pain in the arse! It does feel like overkill sometimes when I’m with friends who don’t make their kids wear helmets on scooters.

Yes it is a pain in the arse, especially having to redo hair outside the classroom once the helmet is off....

How old is your DC? I would have felt fairly casual about helmet-wearing but I saw a 4 year old recently come off - I think went over a bump in the pavement and somehow her body went 180 and she landed right on the very top of her head. Don't even know how she managed it but she was very luckily wearing a helmet. Made me rethink my casual-ness...

I’m on crutches after a child crashed into me the path by the school on his scooter, totally bruised my leg, I couldn’t weight bear for 10 days.
That child was unsupervised had no helmet and totally lost control of his scooter.

There are plenty of state about accidents on bikes and effects of helmets.
Do you have any on scooters and the effects of helmets?
Sometimes my daughter refuses to wear a helmet. It's a judgement call whether to make her walk and she gets bored quicker and less exercise, or whether the risk of head injury is so low that the benefits of increased cardio negate it.

My friends son got a concussion and a night in hospital from a fall off a scooter so the obviously can be dangerous, but maybe not as likely as a bike?

Scooter fall was whilst scooting on the pavement

@Crimblecrumble1990

How old is your DC? I would have felt fairly casual about helmet-wearing but I saw a 4 year old recently come off - I think went over a bump in the pavement and somehow her body went 180 and she landed right on the very top of her head. Don't even know how she managed it but she was very luckily wearing a helmet. Made me rethink my casual-ness...

She's 4, nearly 5 and possibly slightly clumsier than the average child I would say.

My DCs are 6 and 4yo. We have a policy of wheels = helmet. We found it easier than trying to expain the nuance between different apparatus/enviroments etc. They have bikes, scooters, roller skates and skateboards: all require a helmet.

Depends on the scooter, age of DC, how fast. Some scooters you can't build up much of a speed.

@amatsip

I’m on crutches after a child crashed into me the path by the school on his scooter, totally bruised my leg, I couldn’t weight bear for 10 days. That child was unsupervised had no helmet and totally lost control of his scooter.

Crikey!! hope you recover soon

My son got on a scooter that was too big for him, a friends, just tipped backwards. No helmet, head whacked on our concrete path, result concussion. Wear a helmet.

I think you're less likely to fall as horribly as on a bike but I think they should wear a helmet anyway.

I didn't use to but last year my daughter came off of hers spectacularly and broke her wrist and smacked her head on the pavement. We were at A&E with her vomiting and thinking she was at the airport, significantly concussed. I felt like the worst parent for not having her wear a helmet. So thankful it wasn't worse

My eldest once went flying over the handle bars on a scooter not going very fast on an uneven pavement and ended up with a huge bump on her head despite a helmet so I think it’s best for kids to wear them.

I also had a client who fell off a pavement from standing, bumped his head on the kerb, spent a couple of months in hospital with a bleed on the brain and then sadly died so think protecting children’s heads even at low speeds is preferable to not. Obviously most people who have an accident will be fine on a scooter with no helmets but it’s about protecting those incidents where you might not be so lucky.

And after googling stats for scooter related head injuries I've decided I'm not being OTT making my son wear a helmet on his!