Unsafe helmets to face ban

16:20' 25/04/2008 (GMT+7)
VietNamNet Bridge - Safety helmets that hinder their wearer’s sight are to be banned.
The necessary regulations would be published next month, said Standards and Quality Committee deputy director Nguyen Minh Bang.
The new regulations would also require helmets to carry clearly printed information about their origin and other details.

The deputy director said the quality of rims that did not hinder their wearer’s sight would also be tested.

If proven unsafe, they too would be banned.

But tests showed that nine of ten hard-rimmed helmets did not meet the required safety standard, said the deputy director.

The need for the new standard stems from the proliferation of stylised helmets that worry safety officials, said Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Tran Quoc Thang.

Not only rimmed helmets but home-made helmets that vary in shape from peaked caps to oval.

"Hard-rimmed helmets create extra danger for their wearers in an accident," said the deputy minister.

The new regulation will require domestic helmet makers to provide their name; the name of the helmet and the date when it was made on their product. Imported helmets will have to carry their place of origin; the name and address of the importers; size and date of production.

The information will be printed on a quality stamp provided helmet importers and makers. — VNS

Proposed ban on ‘fancy’ helmets opposed

AScience and Technology Ministry draft proposal that would ban fancy safety helmets has raised the ire of scientists, consumer representatives and manufacturers.

The intended ban would apply to helmets other than those which hinder their wearer’s site.

"It’s necessary to have a sound scientific basis to clearly define which shapes in helmets should be banned," Southern Quality Management Agency official Pham Huu Cat.

"We should worry about the materials from which the helmets are made rather than their shape," said Southern Standard and Customer Protection Association director Nguyen Nam Vinh.

They should be allowed if they meet the quality standards, he said.
There were no regulations about the shape of safety helmets in other countries so experiments and research should be done before a style was banned, said scientist Nguyen Tri.

"We are businessmen so we have to meet the customer demand," said a Chi Thanh Helmet Enterprise representative.

Banning stylised helmets would be unreasonable, he said.