Proposal to emboss the words 'helmets for motorcyclists'

Mr. Khuat Viet Hung also said that the National Traffic Safety Committee in coordination with the National Steering Committee against smuggling, trade fraud and counterfeit goods (National Steering Committee 389) will have a report sent to the Government Standing Committee to issue a new directive on helmet quality management. "We will draft a directive, seek opinions from ministries and branches, including the General Department of Standards and Quality, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of Public Security, especially the Traffic Police, to include in the National Technical Regulation on helmets the embossed words "helmetfor motorcyclists and motorbike riders" on the helmet" - Mr. Hung said.

This is to make it easier for the Traffic Police to detect and handle violations of helmet wearing by motorcyclists, motorbikes and electric bicycle riders; and also to preventcounterfeit goods, poor quality goods.

The workshop was co-organized by the National Traffic Safety Committee and the Asia Injury Prevention Foundation (AIP Foundation) to conduct a mid-term assessment and orient the action program on helmet quality within the framework of the “Safety Package” project sponsored by the UPS Foundation (UPS is the world's leading logistics service provider).

The “Safety Baggage” project and the involvement of management agencies to ensure helmet quality in Vietnam.

The workshop was attended by many representatives of central and local agencies, departments and branches, experts in the fields of health and road safety, and businesses that are helmet manufacturers in Vietnam.

The workshop announced the results of a study on helmet quality conducted by the AIP Foundation in collaboration with the University of Public Health in Ho Chi Minh City and Thai Nguyen Province. The research team randomly collected 540 helmets currently in use by adults and children in these two localities for the study.

It is worth noting that 25.9% of the surveyed helmets were “baseball cap” caps, with a thin plastic shell and no foam layer to protect the user’s head, so they are not considered helmets for motorcyclists according to the regulations in the QCVN2: 2008/BKHCN standard (National technical regulation on helmets for motorcyclists).

Primary school students in Ho Chi Minh City participate in a communication program about wearing helmets.

An equally serious problem is that only 10.5% of the total 540 helmets tested met the standards for impact testing according to the testing procedure specified in QCVN2: 2008/BKHCN. In other words, 89.5% of the total number of helmets tested did not meet quality standards, failing to protect users from the risk of traumatic brain injury in the unfortunate event of an accident.traffic accident.

Mr. Khuat Viet Hung, Vice Chairman of the National Traffic Safety Committee, commented: “The results of the above study partly reflect the current situation of using helmets that do not meet quality standards, leading to limitations in reducing the rate of casualties when collisions occur. Although the number of surveyed samples is small, the results of the study also partly reflect the status of helmet quality on the market, raising big questions about the effectiveness and efficiency of quality management for products directly related to the health and lives of people. At the same time, it is also the basis for competent agencies to conduct more thorough and comprehensive investigations and surveys in order to propose specific policies and solutions to improve the effectiveness of helmet quality management for motorcyclists, motorbikes and electric bicycles in Vietnam”.

Delegates at the workshop participated in group discussions on strategies to improve helmet quality. The group discussion results will contribute to the development of an action plan to improve helmet quality in Ho Chi Minh City and Thai Nguyen province, thereby creating a premise for expanding the scale nationwide.