The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is warning the community to be fully prepared, wear protective gear and ride safe to prevent quad bike accidents this summer. “Tragically, 20 Australians have died this year from quad bike accidents, including a six-year-old, a seven-year-old and a 15-year-old. In 2014, there were 15 deaths – sadly, a 30 per cent increase in fatalities this year,” ACCC Deputy Chair Delia Rickard said “Alarmingly, January is the most common month for quad bike deaths among children in Australia. January also has twice the injury rate of other months.”
Ms Rickard explained that many consumers expect that quad bikes can safely go on all kinds of terrain and surfaces. Unfortunately, this isn’t true – riding on steep slopes, rough terrain and even hard, flat surfaces (such as tarmac and asphalt) may cause the quad bike to become unstable and very dangerous. Rickard added that there have been more than 210 deaths associated with quad bikes in Australia since 2001; with children involved in about a third of emergency department presentations involving quad bike accidents during recreational activity.
“A large proportion of quad bike-related deaths during recreational activity have involved the quad bike tipping or rolling over. In cases involving children, the quad bike had tipped or rolled over in almost 75 per cent of incidents,” Ms Rickard added.