Tennessee’s Motorcycle Helmet Law May Effect Your Motorcycle Case

Any motor vehicle accident involving a motorcycle can cause serious personal injuries, even if it is just a small bumper tap. This is because, unlike other motor vehicles, motorcyclists are not afforded a metal shell to help soften or prevent an impact to their bodies. In fact, according to a California study, riders and passengers of motorcycles suffered some kind of injury in 98% of motor vehicle accidents. Most telling, even when it was a single-vehicle accident—just the motorcycle—riders and passengers suffered some kind of injury in 96% of the time.

The most common injuries are fractured bones, road rash, lacerations, and bruises, but also more serious injuries such as concussions, brain damage, spinal cord injuries, and permanent scarring. Most of these injuries are permanent and will having lasting effects on the rider or passenger, but also their family and friends.

The most severe of the injuries are related to the head and spine. To help combat these injuries, some states have made it illegal to operate a motorcycle without a helmet. Tennessee is one such state.

Tennessee Motorcycle Helmet and Safety Laws

Under Tennessee Code Section 55-9-302, “[t] he driver of a motorcycle, motorized bicycle, as defined in chapter 8 of this title, or motor-driven cycle, and any passenger on any of these, shall be required to wear either a crash helmet meeting federal standards contained in 49 CFR 571.218, or, if the driver or passenger is twenty-one (21) years of age or older . . .” to four other state requirements including the specifications of the CFR.

The CFR itself, a federal regulation, is promulgated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration under the Department of Transportation. Under 49 CFR 571.218, there is an exhaustive 17-page listing of definitions, figures, and tables explaining the reasoning and support for such findings.

Moreover, if your motorcycle does not have a windshield, the operator and any passenger must wear safety goggles, face shields, or glasses containing impact resistant lenses. This is provided for under Tennessee Code 55-9-304, and is in addition to Tennessee’s helmet law.

But What Happens if You Are Involved in a Tennessee Motorcycle Accident and Are Not Wearing a Helmet or Goggles?

While failing to wear either a helmet or goggles is technically negligence per se, or negligence on your part by simply violating a law, that does not mean you were automatically the cause of the accident, and you would still have the ability to prove the other driver was negligence in his or her operation of his or her own vehicle. Meaning, the operator of another motor vehicle cannot claim that you were negligence in your failing to wear a helmet, and therefore if you did the accident would not have happened. Said another way, another driver cannot rear-end your motorcycle and attempt to blame the entire accident on you because you did not have your helmet on.

But what will happen is the other driver may claim that, because you failed to wear a motorcycle helmet, the severity of your injuries were increased. This is because the helmet would have prevented you from suffering those worse injuries; the helmet is designed to withstand a certain impact to deaden the blow to your head.

It should be noted that the legislature is currently investigating and reconsidering the helmet law. Notwithstanding their decision, that does not mean you cannot still wear a helmet. As experienced Tennessee motorcycle accident attorneys, we have seen the significant difference in a rider wearing a helmet, and a rider—unfortunately—not wearing a helmet. If you are likely to suffer injuries 98% of the time in a motorcycle accident, it is best to afford yourself the most protection you can and wear a helmet.

Here at Bailey and Greer, PLLC our Memphis motorcycle accident attorneys understand how to effectively pursue your claims. Our legal team has a proven track record of compassionately representing our clients injured in motorcycle crashes which is included in our testimonials page. Please contact us today to receive your free case evaluation by dialing 901-680-9777. Remember, you only have one year from the date of the accident to commence your action to recover compensation.