Department for Transport
Central Government
Noted
The Department for Transport acknowledges the concerns regarding helmet use for e-scooter and bicycle riders. The government guidance for e-scooter rental trials strongly recommends all users should wear helmets. They state that helmets remain a matter of personal choice for cyclists. (AI summary)
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Dear Nathanael,
Thank you for the email of 27 December enclosing a Regulation 28 Report for the death of Daniel Isaacs following the conclusion of your inquest on 16 December 2024.
I am grateful to you for sharing your concerns about there being no requirement for e-scooter and bicycle riders to not wear a helmet. This is a tragic incident, and our thoughts are with the family and friends of Daniel Isaacs.
The use of privately e-scooters on our roads remains illegal. They are only legal to use in the Government run e-scooter trials, for which there was not one in Nottingham and Nottinghamshire at the time of this collision.
The Government guidance for e-scooter rental trials strongly recommends all users should wear helmets and urges all e-scooter trial operators to consider providing helmets or incentivising their use.
However, the purpose of the trials is to inform future regulations on e-scooters and no decisions on this have been made. I have just commissioned a second evaluation of the e-scooter trials, which will look at the impact of helmet provision and uptake amongst e-scooter users and I will ensure we consider a full range of evidence, including international comparisons and a public consultation, before any regulations on the use of e-scooters come into force.
On the matter of helmets for cycles, the question is complex. The Government must carefully balance the safety benefits of mandating helmets against the potential disbenefits. The Department carefully looked at the case for making helmet wearing mandatory in a comprehensive Cycling and Walking Safety Review in 2018 (www.gov.uk/government/speeches/governments-response-to-the-cycling- walking-investment-strategy-safety-review).
The Review concluded that helmetsௗshouldௗcontinue to be strongly recommended for people who cycle, especially for children, but that they should remain a matter of personal choice rather than becoming a legal requirement. It said that the safety benefits of mandating cycle helmets for people who cycle would be likely to be outweighed by the fact that this would put some people off cycling, thereby reducing the wider health and environmental benefits. Enforcement would also be unlikely to be a priority for the police.ௗௗ
However, as I consider future regulations on micromobility devices including e-scooters, I will continue to ensure we look holistically across the piece as road safety remains at the core of the Department’s work.
Thank you for the email of 27 December enclosing a Regulation 28 Report for the death of Daniel Isaacs following the conclusion of your inquest on 16 December 2024.
I am grateful to you for sharing your concerns about there being no requirement for e-scooter and bicycle riders to not wear a helmet. This is a tragic incident, and our thoughts are with the family and friends of Daniel Isaacs.
The use of privately e-scooters on our roads remains illegal. They are only legal to use in the Government run e-scooter trials, for which there was not one in Nottingham and Nottinghamshire at the time of this collision.
The Government guidance for e-scooter rental trials strongly recommends all users should wear helmets and urges all e-scooter trial operators to consider providing helmets or incentivising their use.
However, the purpose of the trials is to inform future regulations on e-scooters and no decisions on this have been made. I have just commissioned a second evaluation of the e-scooter trials, which will look at the impact of helmet provision and uptake amongst e-scooter users and I will ensure we consider a full range of evidence, including international comparisons and a public consultation, before any regulations on the use of e-scooters come into force.
On the matter of helmets for cycles, the question is complex. The Government must carefully balance the safety benefits of mandating helmets against the potential disbenefits. The Department carefully looked at the case for making helmet wearing mandatory in a comprehensive Cycling and Walking Safety Review in 2018 (www.gov.uk/government/speeches/governments-response-to-the-cycling- walking-investment-strategy-safety-review).
The Review concluded that helmetsௗshouldௗcontinue to be strongly recommended for people who cycle, especially for children, but that they should remain a matter of personal choice rather than becoming a legal requirement. It said that the safety benefits of mandating cycle helmets for people who cycle would be likely to be outweighed by the fact that this would put some people off cycling, thereby reducing the wider health and environmental benefits. Enforcement would also be unlikely to be a priority for the police.ௗௗ
However, as I consider future regulations on micromobility devices including e-scooters, I will continue to ensure we look holistically across the piece as road safety remains at the core of the Department’s work.