Aibu to wonder whether most parents insist their children wear helmets when on bikes and scooters?

[Pl242]

I’m curious on views on this.

We have always insisted both our kids (5 and 2.5) wear helmets when on their bikes and scooters.

Our 5yo is in year 1 and has just started to cycle to school. The bike is stored at school and we have been taking the helmet home and bringing it back at pick up. Mostly just as we thought it might easily get lost.

We had noticed that a fair amount, in fact probably the majority of kids who we see on bikes and scooters around school, don’t wear helmets. This surprised us a bit but obviously none of our business as to what decisions other parents make.

However now our 5yo has told us that they’re allowed to cycle around the playground at playtime and also at the after school club she attends at least one afternoon a week. This isn’t a surprise but hadn’t crossed our minds really. She told us about it in the context of a new after school club friend in the year above her who she says doesn’t wear a helmet. This prompted us to tell her that our rule is that she always needs to wear a helmet when cycling and that we would start to leave the helmet with her and her bike at school. She accepted this but obviously we won’t be there to enforce that and she did seem a bit confused/upset as to why she has to and her friend doesn’t etc. We just reinforced our view again.

I don’t want to come off as precious. It’s not as if we’re hugely worried of the risk of her having a serious bike accident in the playground. It’s just that we want to be consistent on helmet wearing. And I know that I can and should direct any specific concerns about bike use at school to the school.

It’s just that this situation prompted me to wonder whether we’re in the minority here or not. Interested in views and if you want to vote I suppose the possible answers are:

YANBU- most parents insist on helmet wearing
YABU - most parents don’t see helmet wearing as important.

Helmets are compulsory in our house regardless of age as the risk of brain injury isn't something that changes because other people do or don't care about it.

Here is a summary of research from Headway the traumatic brain injury charity.
www.headway.org.uk/news-and-campaigns/campaigns/cycle-safety/#:~:text=A%20study%20from%202016%20collected,cycling%20and%20helmets%20to%20date.

Where I live it is mandatory for anyone under the age of 18 to wear a certified helmet while riding a bicycle. You can search that on the Internet now and you'll where I am .
Anyway, my kids always wear helmets. One rides a proper bike and the other one a balance bike. I also wear a helmet whenever I ride my bike, but I got weird looks from my family back home. They think helmets are for road or mountain biking.