Tynan said:
I was being a tad glib but there are some on here and clearly elsewhere that will say that helmets are dangerous in that they make someone more likely to have an accident and offer little real protection in return, I'm very aware of the arguments and reports and surveys and find them unconvincing at best compared to my own opinion based on experience and observation
frankly I think it's an argument of justification put forward by people that don't want to wear helmets, concious or subconscious
of course they're not compulsory, it's a matter of personal choice
who's old enough to remember the arguments against people having to wear seat belts?
Before making assertions about spurious statistics you should check the source of the report and where it is hosted
http://www.networks.nhs.uk/uploads/06/09/wardlaw.pdf. After all, what do the NHS know about cycle injuries or health matters? I didn't say that wearing helmets was dangerous, it is making the wearing of helmets compulsory that makes cycling more dangerous. If you bother to read the report carefully you will find out why this is so. I do remember the arguments over the compulsory wearing of seat belts, but I don't ever remember the NHS objecting to it... But hey way let the facts get in the way of your argument.
I agree that helmet wearing should be a a matter of personal choice, it is just that the safety value of helmet is often exaggerated.
Some cyclist and driver seem to think that if a cyclist is wearing a helmet, that the cyclist then has some sort of invisible force field around them, and therefore they (either driver or cyclist) no longer have to take responsibility for their own actions.
