Petition to Force all Bikers to Wear Protective Clothing Opened
The sister of a rider who was seriously injured in a crash is calling for laws to be drawn up to make it mandatory for protective clothing to be worn when riding a motorcycle
Kimberley Thompson, 23, has begun a petition to ask the UK government to look into making it mandatory for bikers to wear protective clothing while riding their bikes.
The petition has come about after Thompson’s brother, Harry Pyett, 19, skidded on gravel while riding along the B1078 in Hemingstone on Easter Monday. The crash caused Pyett, who, according to the BBC, was wearing ‘non-protective cargo trousers and trainers’, to suffer a badly broken femur and collarbone.
Thankfully for Pyett, he was wearing a helmet and leather jacket at the time. Another saving grace for the young rider was the fact that two off-duty doctors were quickly on the scene and able to assist while paramedics and an air ambulance were sent for.
Per the BBC, Miss Thompson felt "empty and useless" after hearing of the crash, adding that it will take months for her brother to fully recover from the ordeal.
"I had visions of my brother lying on the side of the road in a mangled heap,” she said. “I didn't know if he was alive, and I was scared for his life.
"It just puts into perspective how delicate human life is – he was literally beaten by the ground. He realises how serious it could have been, and it has been a big wake-up call for him."
To try and prevent the same thing from happening to other riders, Miss Thompson has begun a Change.org petition, calling on the UK government to mandate protective motorcycle clothing for bikers. For the petition to reach parliament it’ll need 100,000 signatures, although at the time of writing, it is sitting on just 100.
This isn’t the first time we’ve seen attempts to make protective motorcycle clothing mandatory. Although given how hard it would be to police, it’s difficult to see how it could ever be written into law. If the UK government and police forces can’t stamp out illegal motorcycle and e-bike use on the public roads, how can they be expected to ensure that an estimated 1.4 million bikers are all wearing appropriate riding kit?
You can check out the petition for yourself here.
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Simon (AKA Toad) has been working within the motorcycle industry for more than twelve years, and a member of the motorcyclist family since birth. Growing up around British-built single and twins, it was inevitable that a life on two wheels was on the cards, from a very early age!
