May is Motorcycle Safety Month

Assurnet wants you to be safe and properly covered.

Motorcyclists are more vulnerable on the road and are more likely to be injured or killed than car occupants. Motorcycle crashes cost billions of dollars per year in direct costs such as emergency services, medical costs including rehabilitation, property damage, loss of market productivity including lost wages, loss in household productivity and insurance costs, including claims and the cost of defense attorneys.

Motorcycle Crashes: Safety

• Motorcycle Helmets: Helmets have been shown to be very effective in preventing deaths and reducing injuries in motorcycle riders.
• Training Courses: The Motorcycle Safety Foundation sponsored by motorcycle manufacturers and distributors, works with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), state governments and other organizations to improve motorcycle safety through education, training and licensing. The organization also works with the states to integrate rider safety and skills in licensing tests. It promotes safety by recommending motorcycle operators wear protective gear, especially helmets, ride sober and ride within their skill limits. Riders who complete approved safety courses may be eligible for insurance discounts. The discounts are mandatory in some states.
• Antilock Braking Systems (ABS): Stopping a motorcycle is more complex than stopping a car. Motorcycles have separate brakes for the front and rear wheels, and braking hard can lock the wheels and cause the bike to overturn. Not braking hard enough can put the rider into harm’s way. With ABS, a rider can brake fully without fear of locking up. The system automatically reduces brake pressure when a lockup is about to occur and increases it again after traction is restored. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) reports that the rate of crashes is significantly lower for motorcycles equipped with optional antilock brakes than for the same models without them.
• Motorcycle Helmet Use Laws: Less than half of all states have laws that require all motorcyclists to wear helmets, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Some states require that only people under a specific age wear helmets (see chart). A National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) study covering 10 states found that when universal helmet laws, which pertain to all riders, were repealed, helmet use rates dropped from 99 percent to 50 percent. In states where the universal law was reinstated, helmet use rates rose to above 95 percent.

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Find more out at iii.org