Sales Soar for Bogus Helmets : Law: Motorcyclists ride circles around new statute by wearing lightweight bonnets. Safety experts say illegal headgear provides little protection in a crash.
In the six months since California’s motorcycle helmet law took effect, Vic’s Custom Cycle in Van Nuys has sold about 30 black, fiberglass “rain bonnets” weekly.
Even though they are sold as rain protection and buyers know that it is illegal to wear them as motorcycle helmets, shop owner Vic King and other cycle shop proprietors say they can hardly keep the $50 lightweight bonnets in stock.
“I’m selling what the people want, and I’m not selling it as a helmet. I’m selling it as a bonnet, a rain bonnet,” said King.
A check of 10 Los Angeles motorcycle shops found that four had the “beanie” in stock, and proprietors at all the stores said they sell out quickly.
Wearers say the helmets are cheaper, lighter and less restrictive than the sturdier and more heavily padded helmets required by the law. Moreover, they look enough like the real thing to fool most law enforcement officials.
“I’ve seen dozens of cops today and they look at me and don’t say anything,” said a motorcyclist riding a Suzuki in Chatsworth. He was wearing a small black helmet that he said does not meet the federal standards.
Federally approved helmets are normally identified by a “DOT” sticker on the back, signifying that they meet standards set by the federal Department of Transportation. But phony DOT stickers are easy to get, either from motorcycle shops where substandard helmets are sold or via mail order from businesses that advertise them for $2 for 3 stickers in motorcycle magazines.
Law enforcement officials say it is difficult to estimate how many bikers wear non-complying helmets. But a recent study by two USC research students found that 23% of 150 bikers observed at intersections throughout Los Angeles either wore non-complying headgear or had failed to properly fasten their federally approved helmets--both violations of the helmet law.
In contrast, USC researchers estimate that before the start of the mandatory helmet law, about 7% of those motorcyclists who wore helmets either wore non-complying headgear or failed to properly fasten the federally approved helmets.
Some non-complying helmets are easier to spot than others. Motorcyclists have been seen wearing everything from pith hats to polo hats to Nazi military helmets.
“The big thing is the polo helmets,” said Jeff Merritt, owner of Harley Davidson of Van Nuys, who said he sees bogus headgear on bikers frequently. “Everybody is playing every game they can to circumvent the law.”
The game can be deadly, however.
A 39-year-old San Juan Capistrano motorcycle rider who wore what a coroner’s official said was a helmet typically used for horseback riding was killed Friday morning in a collision on Soledad Canyon Road in Canyon Country. Deputy Coroner Earl Clark said the motorcyclist hit the corner of a flatbed truck and died, most likely of head injuries.
Rick Johnson, a Canoga Park resident who has been riding Harley Davidson motorcycles since 1966, said he recently bought his wife, Anita, a non-complying helmet because it is small and light. He wears a federally approved helmet but said he does not believe it will protect him if he has a serious accident.
“If you go down, a helmet is not going to save your life,” he said. “You have to just take your chances.
Ed Westbrook, a Los Angeles resident who has been riding for nine years, said he wears a federally approved helmet but has begun shopping for one that is smaller and lighter. “I want something like a baseball helmet,” he said. “Something that is virtually not there.”
He also does not worry about the consequences of an accident. “If that day ever comes, we’ll just cross that bridge when it happens,” he said.
The wearing of substandard helmets is not limited to California, which is one of 24 states requiring helmets for motorcyclists and their passengers. The District of Columbia also has a helmet law.
Officials at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said the use of illegal helmets is so widespread that they are producing a videotape to help law enforcement officials throughout the country learn to spot them.
“We know there are some bogus helmets out there, and what this is designed to do is help police identify them,” said Mike Brownlee, an associate administrator at the federal agency that regulates helmet standards.
The most popular of the non-complying helmets is the bowl-shaped rain bonnet sold by King and other motorcycle shop owners. They cover only a portion of a rider’s head and have almost no lining to absorb impact. A label inside the helmets says that they are designed as rain protection and that they do not meet federal motorcycle safety standards.
Bikers say the helmets are more comfortable because they are small and light. But motorcycle safety experts say that wearing them is not much better than wearing nothing.
David Thom, a staff researcher at the USC Motorcycle Accident Research Department, said the vital component of a helmet is the inner plastic foam lining that absorbs the shock by slowly collapsing on impact.
“A helmet without a liner is just good for nothing,” Thom said in a recent radio talk show about bogus helmets.
Dr. Richard Benedon, a trauma center physician at Holy Cross Medical Center in Mission Hills, said he has seen many motorcycle accident victims in his 10 years at the hospital and is convinced that proper headgear can make a difference.
Benedon said accident victims who have worn flimsy headgear generally sustain more serious head injuries than those wearing legal helmets. “There is no controversy over that--helmets save the lives of motorcyclists,” he said.
But for many motorcycle enthusiasts, the issue is not that cut and dried. Any talk about helmets almost always triggers debate over the constitutionality of the helmet law and the benefits of wearing a helmet.
They say federally approved helmets limit a rider’s vision and hearing, and that no helmet is going to prevent injuries in crashes at greater than 35 m.p.h.
Although it has been half a year since it took effect, motorcyclists continue to fervently protest the helmet law. Motorcyclists have scheduled a demonstration at Los Angeles City Hall at noon today.
California law enforcement officials say they can usually distinguish the bogus helmets from the real McCoy and that they stop motorcyclists only when the violation is obvious.
Al Michel, a CHP spokesman in Sacramento, said that despite the proliferation of substandard headgear, compliance with the helmet law has been good and the number of citations issued is dropping.
A spokesman for Assemblyman Richard Floyd (R-Carson), who authored the helmet legislation, said the wearing of bogus helmets is a “last-ditch effort to avoid compliance.”
“Army helmets and stuff like that are not going to meet the requirements,” said Bob Terry, an aide to Floyd.
Micah McCloskey owns a Canoga Park custom cycle shop and said he has sold about 300 beanie helmets since January. He said he warns customers that the headgear is merely a “novelty helmet” and is not legal for riding. But he said he knows most are bought for that purpose.
“What I’m doing is try to take care of my customers,” he said.
Selling non-complying helmets under the false pretenses that they meet federal standards is a federal offense, punishable by a fine of $1,000.
But shops that warn bikers the helmets do not comply with standards are unlikely prosecution targets, say federal officials. Even businesses that distribute or sell DOT stickers are unlikely to be cited unless it can be proven that the businesses are applying the stickers to the helmets.
King, the Van Nuys shop owner, said he used to sell federally approved helmets. But after the law took effect, he found a higher demand for beanies or bonnets. “I had a lot of people request them, so I got them,” he said.
Times correspondent Gary Thornhill contributed to this story.
The Helmet Law
The state law requiring all motorcyclists and passengers to wear a federally approved helmet while riding became effective Jan. 1. Motorcycle enthusiasts and some law enforcement officials say riders sometimes circumvent the law by wearing helmets that do not offer protection in case of a collision.
APPROVED HELMETS
* Price: From $100 to more than $250.
* Characteristics: Covers most of the head, lined with about an inch of plastic foam padding, Department of Transportation (DOT) sticker.
* How they work: The outer shell is designed to shield the rider from hard objects; the inner liner absorbs the shock by slowly collapsing on impact.
* Sources: Sold in motorcycle shops, accessory shops.
* Enforcement: Penalty for not wearing a helmet is $100 for a first offense.
UNAPPROVED HELMETS
* Price: $60 or less.
* Characteristics: Covers only the top of head and has little padding; no DOT sticker.
* How they work: Helmets without padding do not absorb the impact, the force of which is transferred to the rider’s head.
* Sources: Custom motorcycle shops, pawnshops, mail order catalogues, swap meets.
* Enforcement: Penalty for wearing an unapproved helmet is the same.
SOURCE: Law enforcement officials, retail shops and safety experts
