To assess the effectiveness of protective clothing, in particular of crash helmets, a nine-month accident field study was carried out, which covered non-minor injured helmeted and unhelmeted motorcyclists.
Crash Helmets were found to reduce the number of non-minor injured riders at least 82% of the figure for unhelmeted riders. Depending on the motorcycle class, the type and locality of the accident, the risk abatement varies from 82% to 94%. The average head injury risk abatement for helmeted riders of standard motorcycles is about 94% when moderate and more severe head injuries are included, and 97% for severe, serious and fatal head injuries.
With respect to accidents in which unhelmeted riders suffer non-minor injuries, crash helmets reduce the risk of suffering skull fractures, fractures and dislocations of the atlanto-occipital joint and cervical vertebrae by 97% to 98%, moderate cranial brain injuries by 84%, and more severe cranial brain injuries by 97%.
Wearing motorcycle clothing is effective in preventing or reducing abrasions and lacerations at low levels of injury severity. For these kind of injuries a risk abatement of at least 43% was found.