Wearing a helmet in Thailand: Main or side issue?
During my stay in Hua hin I have access to a beautiful motorbike. I rented this from Jeroen, the new owner of bar/restaurant Say Cheese in Hua Hin. The rental price is fine and the motorbike is well insured (also important).
Jeroen delivered the motorbike neatly to my bungalow and I was given two helmets on loan. This introduction brings me to the topic of this post: helmets.
I had already decided to buy a good helmet for my girlfriend and myself, but until then I was helped with the loaner helmets. The reason to buy a helmet yourself is twofold:
- Hygiene (it's not cool to wear a helmet that many preceded you).
- Safety (a helmet should provide good protection when needed).
What some readers may not know is that you can still have a good helmet, but if it doesn't fit properly, a lot of its protective effect is lost. Read more about helmets here: www.motor.nl/
Protection or….?
In Thailand you can already buy a helmet, or what passes for it, for 200 baht (5 euros). You will understand that you might as well put on a swimming cap when it comes to protection. These 'jars' slide easily, the closure is also broken. So totally useless in a crash or collision. Yet I see many Thai and farang driving with such a cheap copy. I wonder then, are you doing that just to have something on your head so you don't have to pay 'tea money' to the local hermandad? You don't believe that the potty means anything in an accident, do you?
Everyone has their own choice of course. My mother always said: "If you don't wear a helmet, you probably don't have anything in your head that you want to protect".
To finish my story I bought a good and suitable helmet for 1.700 baht. For my girlfriend another copy that cost 800 baht and also fits well. Perhaps not yet the best solution, but in any case better than the standard 'jar'.
I would like to know from the readers what they think about a helmet. Is it important or secondary to you?
With a helmet on, my opinion, you feel safe, so you go for it, because you think now nothing can happen to me, WRONG!, Thailand is not Europe!, because you need your eyes in front and behind here, with a helmet, visibility is literally poor all around.
Without a helmet, then you watch out, and you drive passively, and see much more, so safer in my eyes!
In my youth there was no compulsory helmet at all, and we all drove, at least most of us, on a souped-up Kreidler or Zündapp and that always went well, I always longed for those beautiful times back, that is also one of the reason why I live here, in Thailand so, not a finger from the local government (Isaan) or other busybodies, touring around on your moped, wall that's what I call the 110cctjes, let the hair (still have them) flutter in the open air, LOVELY…nozem forever ^-^
Do have a different opinion when it comes to a heavy motorcycle, then I agree with the writer above, for example a HD or MV Agusta, or any other heavy brand, when you drive at high speeds, it is definitely safer to wear a good helmet, think especially of an integral helmet, e.g. an Arai or other Kema approved brand, but you will not find these in Thailand, so buy a new one in NL or B and take it here, is my advice.
Gr, Eddy, nozem forever.
Dear Eddy, everyone has their own opinion, but that without a helmet in Thailand would be safer than with, I do not accept. I put such a comment in the category: Smoking is not unhealthy, because my grandfather was a chain smoker and he turned 86 years old.
'Without a helmet is safer' – Eddy, if you think like that you probably don't need a helmet according to Khun Peter's mother………..
Whether it's a light or a heavy bike, it doesn't make any difference or do you think your head is strong enough to absorb the blow at low speeds? Well, I can tell you, unfortunately from my own experience, that it isn't. Three years ago I fell with my racing bike at a good 25 km/h. I was found in a deeply unconscious state some time after the event – it was a remote place. My head was the first part of my body to hit the asphalt. The doctors told me later that I certainly wouldn't have been able to tell the story without a helmet. I kept the badly damaged helmet to show it to people who think it is safer without a helmet……………
No, it's no different for a motorcycle than for a bicycle - until a few years ago also ridden a motorcycle for many decades, so I speak from experience in that respect.
A helmet is much more than 'false safety' because it can save your life. Of course, if you put the thing on and you are unwise enough to then feel invulnerable and adjust your driving style/traffic behavior accordingly, you are asking for trouble. Anyway, in that case the statement of Khun Peter's mother applies again………….
@cornelis, then a lot of Dutch people drive around on a (moustache) moped without brains, and don't tell me that those things only drive 25 kmh per hour!, and by the way, before a helmet came on the market with good protection many lost their lives because of a helmet that they thought was safe, just think of those half helmets (willempie), or the jet helmet where many people with a neck injury were disabled for life or worse, left their lives, don't talk to me about it about, and then some, can you remember the lap belt duty, also something like that. Normally when I get on my MV I do have a helmet on, but on my wife's moped I let my hair flutter like before in the 60s, and nobody here in the village says anything about it, because I only me to the rest, that is not called integrals but integration, everyone is responsible for themselves, fortunately the norm here in Thailand, not like e.g. in the Netherlands where you live, fortunately, I already felt dead in the Netherlands, enjoy me from my 2nd youth, how long?, we'll see, I bear that responsibility myself.
Eddy, nozem forever.
Full guarantees can never be given, dear Eddy de nozem, so not even with a helmet approved by safety authorities, but let's hope that you will not get a '3rd youth' after an accident in which you have to learn to eat again by being fed like a child , you have lost the toilet so that you have ended up in diapers, you can hardly walk anymore because the communication between the lower body and the brain has become seriously disrupted and that lower body also includes an unnamed body part…
Unfortunately, I know someone who now has to go through life like this after an accident, although it did not happen in Thailand, but that does not detract from the seriousness of the matter.
Know that the above can not only happen to moped and motorcyclists, but risks can be limited as much as possible, an accident is in a small corner says the well-known cliché, but it can be no less the harsh reality.
What Eddy says is not as strange as it seems at first sight. http://www.cnet.com/news/brain-surgeon-theres-no-point-wearing-cycle-helmets/
This study concerns bicycle helmets, but will also partly apply to moped helmets. Of course it is true that if something happens you are much better off with a helmet than without. I certainly don't want to go so far as to discourage helmet use. But clear view is not unimportant either, and it is also interesting to know that motorists apparently display different behavior when people wear helmets.
Dear Eddie.
Wearing a good helmet is definitely important.
Also in Thailand.
And good helmets cost more than 10000 baht in Thailand.
And are available from renowned big bike dealers .
If you go down with eg 80 km, it doesn't matter if you ride a Honda Dream or a Harley Davidson.
The moment your head gets acquainted with the Thai asphalt or concrete , then a good helmet can prove its real service .
Many of the deaths ( and especially young people ) in my area are mostly moped accidents .
With the skull as the cause of death.
Some end up in a wheelchair after surviving and have the appearance of a retarded individual.
Jan Beute
I have a full face helmet bought in Thailand, XL, 61-62 cm and have to pull it over my fat head because I have a big head and not just because there is so much in it, I just have a big head. And that helmet is on my head even if I only step on the motosaai for a short distance.
Like the seatbelt in the car, that thing is part of my driving. I've had 3 accidents, one of which was serious and without that thing I would have been dead now. Without proper clothing I would not have escaped skin grafting in certain places and without heavy shoes I now had a foot off because I had a serious toe injury through the steel toe cap.
Incidentally, the helmet was checked for cracks after those accidents and they were not and are not there.
For me, helmet on the motorcycle and seatbelt in the car are immovable. My wife and foster son won't get on the moto boring if that thing isn't on their heads AND fastened. And that has nothing to do with a 'bon' but with discipline for your own safety.
If, as Eddy writes, the visibility with a helmet on is not good, you can buy another visor, a blank visor and those things are not that expensive.
No, that thing is part of it for me.
I can imagine something about Eddy's thinking, although I don't agree. I'm not going to drive more carelessly because I'm not wearing a helmet.
I don't have a "safe" helmet either, but I always wear one with full face coverage. In the event of an accident, the helmet may not be of much use to me, but it will be of great use to me in daily driving.
I usually drive 80 km/h and sometimes 100. And I have a few accidents on every trip from our house to Hua Hin and back… sometimes it's stones, sometimes armored insects and it was also a low hanging branch in the dark . Maybe the blow to the helmet seemed worse than it would have been to my head, but I think if I hadn't been wearing a helmet I would have been knocked out twice already.
And once around six o'clock, shortly after sunset, ride your motorcycle without a helmet. You don't have to have dinner anymore if you don't keep your mouth shut.
An accident is an extreme, but just the daily protection against everything flying around is enough reason for me to wear a helmet.
I am an avid biker and do a lot of miles here in Thailand. Whether you wear a helmet or not: you are never safe in traffic; There is a certain amount of risk associated with every trip. wearing a helmet does reduce the risk of serious head injuries. Distinguishing between wearing a helmet on a "ladybike" or a heavy motorcycle makes no sense, both risks are the same. I would rather say that the light bikes, called lady bikes by me, are more dangerous than the heavier bikes. If you see what speeds those 125CC lady bikes reach, then you know enough. They reach speeds of around 100 km/h. The braking system, the weight, the frame, the tires, in case of having to go deep into the brakes, cannot cope with such speeds. Why do so many accidents happen with those smaller motorbikes. Because many tourists, who never ride a motorbike at home, tour here on bikes without any form of knowledge or protection. I would say : always put on the helmet, even if it is for a short slow ride. At slow speeds, a good helmet does offer protection. If you hit a wall at 100km/h, nothing will protect you.
lung addie
If you drive 100 km/h with a “ladybike” you no longer need to wear a helmet. The result is the same in an accident. Handsome boy if you survive.
It just depends on how an accident occurs, how you end up and against what. A helmet wearer will always have some protection. It could be the difference between surviving or not. You don't have to be a "good boy" for that.
Here you should definitely wear a helmet very necessary
I also have one for my 6-year-old grandson if he wants to come along.
Because the Thais here don't look after their kids in front without a helmet.
Children also in the front of the car I sometimes hold my heart.
They see no danger at all and most of them cannot drive
Even if they are not always safe, the helmets can still save your life.
Thanks to a good helmet I didn't get a head injury after an accident. I threw away the helmet and bought a new one. And the Thai didn't have a helmet. 17 stitches. but you really have to watch out here schoolchildren also ride those moters4 man on it and do not know the traffic rules, it is a pity that it is not taught at school.
I think one should also pay close attention to whether the insurance is valid. The mopeds and scooters in Thailand are seen as motorcycles (50CC or more) in the Netherlands. Therefore, if you are (travel) insured in the Netherlands, you are not authorized to drive such a vehicle. I don't know how this works with insurance in Thailand...
You must have a Thai motorcycle license. Especially as a foreigner.
First excuse for insurance not to pay.
Helm is only important for police to increase their revenue.
Fortunately, near the universities, I see the police checking students to see if they are wearing a helmet.
A good helmet will come in 50 years…and a matter of evolution.
I myself have been an avid helmetless motorbike rider in Thailand for years, but for several years I have never done that again, and I even bought a really good helmet. If, like me, you work in insurance, there are constant examples of the consequences of driving without a helmet. Deaths, permanent brain injuries, you name it. Breaking an arm or a leg is one thing, but you don't have a spare brain.
And those cheap jars available here really don't help much. For a few thousand baht you prevent a lot of misery.
What strikes me, but does not surprise me, is that very few motorcycle taxis carry a helmet for the passenger. If they do have one, I'll always put it on.
Such a helmet does not protect you from accidents, but can help prevent or limit certain injuries.
If there's no helmet for the passenger, I'm not going to make a fuss about it. Life is not without risks and I think that the motorbike taxi drivers are generally very attentive and defensive.
If you are touring on a motorcycle, it is of course wise to wear a quality helmet and ditto clothing. But here too, someone must have the freedom to weigh up the risks themselves and sometimes leave the optimal safety measures for what they are.
Main thing!
I think something is literally and figuratively overlooked, in my opinion, if you don't wear a helmet, you are not insured and, just like in NL, you will not be paid out
Dear Wim,
I don't know what the insurance rules are like in Thailand, but I do in Europe. The basis of government-mandated insurance is 'civil liability'. So damage that you cause to someone else through your fault. In that case, the damage is always paid to the victim.
You must take out an all-risk insurance policy for your own damage. Conditions may be attached to this all-risk insurance. In the event of non-compliance with these conditions, the insurer may refuse to pay out its own damage. Not wearing a helmet can then result in your own damage not being paid. But that is separate from the 'legal liability insurance' against damage caused to others.
Hi everybody,
If I'm not mistaken, a helmet is mandatory, right?
Actually, you could ask, main issue, side issue, or NECESSITY, and it should be a necessity for everyone.
You certainly have people who say that wearing a helmet makes it less visible to other traffic, or that the shape of their haircut is more important than safety. .etc.etc.
All excuses where you try to justify something, which is safer with a well-fitting helmet.
Someone traveling without a helmet puts themselves in greater danger, and often entails costs for the community in the form of higher insurance costs, and family members who have to nurse this person for a lifetime.
Even as a passenger of a driver who drives so defensively, there is no guarantee, especially in Thailand, when you see what other traffic participants are on the road for.
Dear Peter:
In Maha Kharasam [isaan] my ex-girlfriend thought she didn't need a helmet there. She knew it all so well! Three days into our daily market visit, we were stopped 3 times at the same traffic light and also the same agent and ticketed for 200 baths/who had to be tapped at the main office, with the necessary waiting time there. After being detained for 3 days, I bought two helmets at 400 bath each to get rid of the hassle. The agent already knew my name/hello William sabai-di?
Gr; William Schevenin…
I don't think Thailand has become safer with all those swimming cap-like models. It would be better for safety if people drove more slowly and more defensively, with or without a bathing cap. In this I sympathize with Eddy's opinion.
The reality is that most Thais can't afford helmets worth thousand(s) baht. An obligation to wear a helmet is therefore not realistic, and can also be called perverse in a certain sense. After all, people are forced to spend money on unsafe “swimming caps” (or tea money).
On a motorcycle you only have one crumple zone and that is you from head to toe!
Be smart and wear that helmet. The fact that you come out as a raw tartar because you are wearing shorts and a shirt is not pleasant, but that will be fine. But damage to your brain is a bit more serious!
Two years ago, my partner and I bought simple helmets on our holiday in the Netherlands and took them with us. With the idea of selling them again in Thailand. That didn't work, in the motorcycle rental the ceiling was full of helmets. We weren't the first. Now they are with our apartment landlord in chan Chang Mai. Ready for our next trip. A nice feeling
with or without a helmet, when I see the consequences of considering wearing a helmet excessive.
an acquaintance who was going to enjoy his retirement in Thailand had an accident with his moped. it was a crossing horse.
half his skull crushed and after several months in a coma. he could barely eat a bite and also died.
I would say at least put on a helmet, better for nothing than for something.
Moderator: Are the receipts capitalized?
After reading all the comments, I would like to add something to this as a farang.
I myself live in Ubon Ratchantani, married to a policewoman and know about 100 or more colleagues there. Raids are sometimes held at known points in Ubon and the first thing that is checked is whether the motorbike is your property. It is really not the case that the police always check whether you have a helmet on your head and often get off with a warning.
In Thailand there is too much freedom to do and leave there, the rules that exist are ignored by the population, including wearing a helmet.
Of course fines are handed out for not wearing a helmet, but a police officer will never chase a motorbike if he ignores the stop sign. As long as the police do not apply the traffic rules themselves, the Thai population will flout the rules that exist. Freedom is of paramount importance here in Thailand.
I myself had an accident on my wife's motorbike 16 months ago due to the fault of a Thai woman who ran a red light, the result was a broken arm, a double ankle fracture and the necessary abrasions, the responsible woman took off like a hare. Fortunately I wore a helmet otherwise the damage would probably be impossible to tell. So motorbikers helmet on.
This also seen that traffic in Thailand is gaotic and I sometimes and actually always think that they are busy at the fair instead of on the road. I therefore believe that Thailand still has a long way to go when it comes to road safety. Yes in the Netherlands there are many rules, too many I would say, but better rules than no rules with regard to road safety here in Thailand.
I haven't seen me on a motorbike since bought a car and I like that a lot better here.
Hendrik.Ubon ratchantani
Okay…., your statement has convinced me, after reading all the reactions, especially after the discussion I had with my Thai wife last night, I have decided to wear my helmet on my moped here in Thailand from now on.
But now, early this morning, my wife is driving to the village to do her shopping there, with her 110cc moped, mind you…..without her helmet!, I understand mindlessly, do you understand?
Laughing, Eddy, she thinks you should wear that thing and then drives herself without it…………..
By the way, based on your previous contributions: I am also from the generation that already rode a motorcycle when you didn't have to wear a helmet. My first copy had an aluminum outer shell – where you pressed a dent with your thumb – with a layer of cork on the inside. Protection value, seen with today's knowledge, probably nil and yet - as I remember - you felt a lot safer with it. Completely wrong, of course, I now know that.
I personally agree with Eddie. Wearing a helmet gives a false sense of security. Such a jar of 200 baht simply gives zero protection, although some people feel safe with this. A European full-face helmet does provide good protection. However, this only protects the head. I also see so much injury to the body. The motto is simply to drive calmly, soberly and safely. Unfortunately, many road users do not adhere to this.
Regards, Fedor
A motorsai in LOS usually has between 110 and 150 cc displacement.
In the EU (so still NL and BE) you need an A1 driving license with a motorcycle up to 125cc or 11kW (15pk) or max. 0.1kW per kg.
Your 125cc engine must therefore weigh at least 110kg if it is the maximum 11kW (15hp) strong,
For a motorcycle of 35kW (47pk) or max. 0.2kW per kg you need an A2 certificate.
Your motorcycle must therefore weigh at least 175 kg if it is the maximum 35 kW (47 hp) strong.
If your motorcycle is even more powerful and/or heavier, you need an A driving licence.
After an accident, an insurer can always invoke driving without a valid driver's license if you do not have the required driver's license for the vehicle being driven. Based on this, the insurer can reject the claims.
If all goes well, your national and international driving license will contain identical categories of driving license/ID that you have.
In practice, the lion's share of tourists from the EU drive farrang in LOS without a valid driver's license/ID with a motorsai. They rarely have a driver's license/ID A1, A2 or A.
I know, except for the exceptions that prove the rule. And for holders of a Thai driving license that matches the vehicle, of course no problem.
Thank you Mark, You have given a perfect explanation, although I must admit that I did not know that data. I have always wondered whether you needed a driver's license on such a “moped”. I have had my driving license A/B/E for more than 40 years and I am allowed to drive all motorcycles/motorbikes. However, I don't do that anymore, because I've become too unstable for a heavy bike (because of hip surgery).
On the last line, Thailand has a treaty with the Netherlands (I don't know for Belgians among us) so go with your Dutch moped or motorcycle license (if you have one) to the person responsible for obtaining a Thai's motobike driver's license, a whistle of a penny, … put on a good helmet ! then you can hum carefree here in Thailand.
Eddie.
I have been riding light motorcycles here in Thailand for many years and there used to be no helmet requirement.
I now have 1 because it's mandatory and I don't feel like paying fines. I think they stink and have 1 of Baht 200-, is an inverted flower pot. If I drive into the sois, it goes off, dirty thing. I don't care what anyone else thinks about it.