Backing to change law on quad bike roll bars

Backing to change law on quad bike roll bars

7 June 2023

THE campaign for roll bars to be made mandatory on all quad bikes must continue, according to Baroness Margaret Ritchie.

She is seeking further clarification from the UK Government after the Department for Transport confirmed that it is to consult on replacing current legislation governing the use of roll bars on road and agricultural quads.

Ms Ritchie is backing a campaign for roll bars to be fitted to all quads which is being spearheaded by the wife of leading businessman Denis Lynn, who was the founder and figurehead of Downpatrick’s Finnebrogue Artisan.

Christine Lynn is calling for the law to be changed and believes that if roll bars had been fitted to the machine her husband was riding in a field near their home in May 2021, he would still be alive.

Roll bars are designed to stop the single-person quad bike from coming down on top of the rider and crushing or asphyxiating them beneath the bike.

Mr Lynn was riding his machine accompanied by one of his daughters when it rolled over at low speed which subsequently resulted in his death.

His wife believes that quads will continue to be “death traps” if they are not fitted with a number of senior politicians backing her calls for a change in the law.

Mrs Lynn said her husband was a regular user of quad bikes and was seeking to raise awareness of the risks posed by the off-road vehicles, calling for new rules to reduce the likelihood of similar accidents being repeated. 

There is currently no legislated age restriction or helmet requirements for riding a quad bike in the UK.

“I now deem it my responsibility to do what I can to stop an accident like this happening again to another family,” said Mrs Lynn.

“Denis was a loving husband and father. He left behind me and his four daughters, including Ciara, who was 17 that spring Sunday evening on the farm when she witnessed her dad have his accident.

“Nothing will bring Denis back not to us, or the Finnebrogue family which he left behind. We will forever remember the extraordinary achievements which established him as one of the UK’s leading entrepreneurs and changed so many lives for the better.”

Mrs Lynn said the one thing they would all like to ensure is that nobody else suffers the same fate as her late husband.

She added: “If there were roll bars on Denis’s bike, he would still be with us. It also seems scandalous that anybody can ride a quad bike off road without a licence and that in England, Scotland and Wales you don’t have to wear a helmet. These these vehicles will continue to be death traps without additional safety measures.”

Ms Rithcie recently raised the quad bike roll bar issue in the House of Lords, asking what steps, if any, the government plans to introduce regulations which enable the provision of roll bars on quad bikes.

In response, Department for Transport parliamentary under secretary Baroness Vere of Norbiton, said the technical requirements for quad bikes depended on their intended use.

In a written response she said road or agricultural bikes must be type approved, while those classed as machinery need to meet the Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations 2008.

“Following research by the Health and Safety Executive in Great Britain, the advice for quad bikes used in workplace settings is that roll over protection systems (ROPS) are not recommended,” she continued.

“It was shown that ROPS may lead to an increased risk of injury in the event of an overturn by either preventing the operator from separating from the machine or striking the operator as the machine overturns.”

Baroness Vere did confirm that the government plans to consult on replacing the current, interim, approval scheme for road and agricultural quads, with a full type GB scheme and that any new evidence supplied during this process will be given consideration.

Welcoming the consultation plans, Ms Ritchie says she wants to know when this will start and will pursue the issue further.

Mrs Lynn is seeking to raise awareness of the risks posed by the off-road vehicles and is calling for new rules to reduce the likelihood of similar accidents being repeated, highlighting the need for it to be mandatory to wear a helmet while riding a quad and revealed roll bars on quads is mandatory in Australia.

Australia’s quad bike safety standard came into effect after a long-fought campaign by a coalition of rural voices, including the National Farmers’ 

Federation, the Royal Flying Doctor Service and the Country Women’s Association.