helmets soon ??

Ready or not, the Helmet Law will be fully implemented starting Jan. 2, 2013.
This means motorcycle drivers and passengers have to wear crash helmets that follow government safety and quality standards.
"Starting January, one will have to buy the prescribed helmet from retailers,"said Asteria Caberte, regional director of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) in a briefing yesterday.
By 2013, the agency will go after retailers selling non-prescribed crash helmets, she said.
Despite the clamor from various motorcycle groups to ditch Republic Act 10054 or the Helmet Law, the DTI and Land Transportation Office said the law, whose strict implementation was put off for several months, will finally be enforced.
LTO Regional Director Raul Aguillos said the law was already signed by President Benigno Aquino III.
DTI will only be issuing accreditation stickers to individual motorcycle riders for their old helmets until today.
The sanction for tampering or using fake stickers is P10,000 for motorists and a higher amount of P20,000 for store owners according to Caberte.
Aguillos said the law was not created to favor any helmet trader or brand but to protect the motorcycle riders.
"Based on statistics, 80 percent of road accidents involves motorcycles, and these are mostly fatal.
“That is why we really see the need to protect riders. This law will help us do that," said Aguillos.
At present, 83 helmet brands have passed DTI standards.
Engr. Dario Cabarrubias said DTI looks for “minimum protection features of helmets”. The helmets should at least cover the ears and have intact protective pads and complete retention systems.
“If the helmet lacks these features, even if the brand is in the list, we usually don't accept it," said Cabarrubias.
First offenders pay a fine of P1,500, then P3,000 for the second offense and P5,000 for the third offense. For succeeding violations, the penalty is P10,000 and confiscation of one’s driver's licence.
The law was supposed to be implemented last August but heated objections from the riding public forced the government to give more time for riders to secure helmet stickers and to conduct an information drive. /Aileen Garcia-Yap, Reporter

 

We will see, but I will wear one coming January two even if I am the only fool to do so, like last August...

 

"Based on statistics, 80 percent of road accidents involves motorcycles, and these are mostly fatal."

I call BS!

Larry

 

More like so far the manufacturers of 83 helmet brands have "greased" the DTI officials

 

Proper lights,mirrors and a little common sense (education) could bring this number much lower

 

you can't teach sliced bread to jump into a toaster by itself....

 

Friends and customers have had 3 more or less identical accidents the past month, and myself being cm from having one.
All in left lane passing slower traffic in the right lane, when someone makes a U-turn or left turn, only looking at oncoming traffic, paying no attention to faster traffic passing in the left lane. Mostly tricycles doing a U- or left turn without giving any signal or even looking before turning.
None of them has resulted in any action against the driver at fault. Wonder if it has anything to do with victims all being foreigners...

 

... and what is the connection to the enforcement of the helmet law?

 

As long as the majority of motorbikes lacks side mirrors the driver hasn't the slightest idea what's going on behind. Moreover you cannot expect he/she will have a look over his/her left shoulder to see it's safe to make a U-turn of left turn. After all side mirrors are being considered as an accessory to be removed as fast as can be.

 

I am probably the only one happy to see the law enforced as it will force me to wear one.