CRASH HELMETS are the only mandatory piece of riding gear you are legally required to wear in the UK when riding a bike.
It seems strange to me that anyone can hop on a bike in just swimming trunks and flip flops and as long as they have a helmet on that confirms to UK and EU standards, you’re good to go. Not that anyone would do this but, legally at least, you’re in the clear!
As the helmet is the only mandatory item, I also find it strange that people would go to extreme lengths to spend as little as possible on them, putting their life in hands of a product that could be sub-optimal.
In the video below, we see a Facebook member who alleges to have bought a £44 lid from a website called Wish. The motocross styled lid is placed on the floor and the chap in the video explains that they are going to do (a fairly unscientific but shocking none the less) ‘drop test’.
A friend picks up the helmet and inspects it and then places it the right way up on the concrete floor. What looks like a kerb stone or a breeze block is then dropped on the lid from a height of about 3.5 to 4 feet in the air.
Shockingly the lid is flattened and seems as though it would offer next to no protection to the wearer should they have an accident in it. The sides of the lid split open like a Christmas bauble being crushed under your foot.
Now, we have to tread carefully here as we don’t see the lid prior to the clip and there are things people could do to weaken a lid or degrade the internal or external structure but, why would they. Like I said, this is a non-scientific example of what £44 is alleged to get you from this site.
I think the key point to take away from this is that buying from websites abroad is an attractive way of getting a flash looking helmet for not a lot of money. Does it mean the item conforms to the legal requirements imposed on us in this country though? Or worse, is the lid going to offer any protection in the event of a crash? From looking at this video, possibly not!
For a guide on how to choose the right helmet, click here.
Have you ever bought a helmet or any other protective gear from Wish or any other websites like that? If so, let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
