Not letting my child ride/scooter without helmet, but I seem to be the only one AIBU?

[WearTheHelmet]

DD is 9, Year 5.

She likes to ride her bike or scooter but has recently refused if I make her wear her helmet. Like as in if I offer it she’ll say “Can I do it without my helmet?” and when I say no she says “Then I’m not going to be the only one doing it with one so no”.

I’ve noticed on the school run, Key Stage 1 and younger (so Years 2 and below) all wear helmets but once they get to year 3/Key Stage 2 they seem to stop, I haven’t seen anyone else in DDs year/class wearing one for years.

I always think it’s safer and part of the school run is along a fast B road where the cars ignore the 20 mile an hour zone around school times and drive down at 50+ (there have been a couple of fatal accidents along the road involving pedestrians, none involving children but still it’s a risk).

So AIBU? And if not how do I persuade DD it’s in her interests to use her helmet?

Bike no way. No helmet no bike. And I've made it clear why.

Scooter.. I'm going to admit I've eased up a bit now.

You won't convince her

So it's not a battle I'd enter into. Sell her bike

I have always insisted. DH and I wear them too.

In March, we were on holiday cycling down a cycle path and DH was avoiding a toddler who turned across his path without warning. He was cycling downhill and v slowly really. He slammed on his brakes and went over his handlebars, face first into a post. He broke his cheek in 3 places, plus his jaw and fractured his eye socket. He was taken to A&E, confused and disorientated. He started vomiting profusely. He had severe concussion. He needed reconstructive surgery, took months to recover from the concussion. He was genuinely moving at a slow pace. His helmet when we collected it was crushed/dented at the front. I do not want to think about the injuries if he hadn't been wearing it.

Damn right my dc wear a helmet. No helmet, no cycling or scootering.

Bike always a helmet , scooter I'm a bit lapse

YANBU. I wouldn’t be trying to persuade her.

If she wants to ride her bike, she wears a helmet. It’s that simple. If she makes the choice to just not ride her bike, then that’s okay too.

I wouldn’t be a dick to make a point and sell it though

No helmet, no bike for my DD.

I agree with you OP.

I can't believe so many parents would let their children ride without a helmet in your daughter's class.

How can parents be so irresponsible?

People really need to be protected from themselves and the law needs to change because people are too stupid.

Would she like to see my ds's helmet after his accident? It was compressed by 5cm at the front and fractured all the way through to the back. He's 17 and wears a helmet with no complaints every single bike trip without fail by choice

Everyone wears helmets where we live.

Another one here agreeing with 'no helmet, no scooting / bike riding / skateboarding'.

A neighbours 12/13yr old grandson tragically died after falling off his skateboard and hitting his head in the ground.

@ThePineapplePrincess

I'm happy to be a dick! No helmet = no bike ride

No bike ride= means no point in keeping it!

We were always no helmet = you're walking.

So much so, I had to wear one myself!!

Hmm I dunno... my DS (6) flat out refuses to wear a helmet so there's not much I can do. He's outgrown his old one and tbh I haven't replaced it because I know he won't wear it so what's the point in spending money on one? I do worry about him but he doesn't go far on his bike, just round our estate and always where I can see him xx

Where I live all kids seem to wear helmets.
maybe not so much for scooting though.

my kids have to wear helmet for both cycling and scooting. Not up for discussion at all.

No helmet, no wheels. We are in the minority but it's non-negotiable for us.

Catastrophic head injuries don’t really care how far from home or otherwise you are or if a parent is watching or not. It only takes one fall.

Another vote for no helmet = no bike.

Most primary age kids I see I'd say wear them with a bike don't see any over about 5 wearing them for a scooter.

However I never see any secondary age kids wearing them. Round here they'd rather no bike at all than wear a helmet.

When I was your DD’s age I never wore a helmet. Then some new neighbours moved in and their same age kids always wore theirs. Their dad was a road traffic policeman and he said he’d peeled enough helmet-less children off pavements and roads that it was non-negotiable and he strongly encouraged me to wear mine too!

My DS is 7 and always wears his.

Non- negotiable here. A friend of DC fell on a scooter last year without a helmet, she was 7 and took half her face off going along gravel, if she had been wearing a helmet it would not have been half as bad. She is thankfully healed now with no scars but it took 6 months.

Thanks everyone.

No Helmet = No Wheels

I'll stick to that, if that means she doesn't ride/scooter then thats what happens, I'd rather that.

You can lock the bike away if he won't wear his helmet.

My son and DiL insist on a helmet for scooter, skates and bike. The reason is simple. They are both paramedics and have scooped up too many children with head I juries..

No helmet = no wheels has always been promoted in our house, even if just scooting around the garden.

Even though, I have seen plenty of my children's friends scooting and cycling with no helmets, mine have never ever questioned it.

My children are far too precious to let something like that slide.

@farmfoodsqueen I was within a metre of my DD when she hit a wobbly paving slab and went over her handlebars. Her head (and helmet) missed a concrete wall by an inch. In the end the worse she ad was a grazed knee... but it nearly wasn't.

No helmet no wheels here too. I had an (adult) work colleague who fell off their bike not wearing a helmet. It's an extreme example but she hit her head on a kerb as she fell. She nearly died 3 times, was in a coma for 3 months and has had life changing injuries which she will never recover from. I told my children, in an appropriate way, all about it. They never argue now because they like being alive.