Calls for updated crash helmet laws in Jersey

Alison Marshall's son Brian was killed in a skateboarding incident

Campaigners across Jersey are calling for updated legislation on wearing cycle helmets.

A petition has been put forward in Jersey by Alison Marshall, whose son Brian died in a skateboarding accident 18 years ago.

She has campaigned for children's helmet laws in Jersey to be extended to skateboards, scooters and roller-skates.

The Government of Jersey has been approached for comment.

Cyclists in Jersey under the age of 14 currently have to wear a helmet by law, after it was voted in by politicians in 2014.

Ms Marshall said she had been working with Headway Jersey to improve helmet safety across the island.

She described her son's accident, which happened outside their home, as "devastating".

She said: "When I spoke to the doctor, he said Brian would not have passed if he had been wearing a helmet."

She added that she wanted to work with the community and government "to improve awareness, education and to revisit legislation that isn't in line".

In Guernsey, there are no laws in place on helmet-wearing.

Charity Headway Guernsey said it encouraged all islanders to wear cycle helmets "especially young children as they are particularly vulnerable".

Deputy Lindsay de Sausmarez, president of the Committee for the Environment & Infrastructure, said the committee was "not minded to introduce new legislation which is not absolutely necessary" as such laws "can act as barrier for some people, and evidence suggests that the net effect could even be negative".

She added: "While we’d encourage people to wear helmets when riding a bike, the committee’s priority in terms of improving safety – and with it more people’s appetite to consider riding a bike – is to focus on improving infrastructure as appropriate, which is what will have the most positive impact on safety for all road users."

Jo Watts, a former Commonwealth Games cyclist from Guernsey, was hospitalised after a collision with a car while training for the 2015 Island Games in Jersey.

She broke 11 bones and was in hospital for a week, needing to have an operation.

Ms Watts said wearing her helmet was "a matter of life and death".

"My helmet was there between myself and the road to protect me," she said.