Claim: India and UK Allow Motorcyclists to travel without helmets if driving under 30km.
Fact: The claim is partly false. In traffic laws in India and the UK, the only exception to the helmet rule is if the rider/passenger is Sikh and wears a turban instead of a helmet.
A TikTok video showing Sri Lankan businessman Dhammika Perera saying that bike riders in India and England are allowed to ride a motorcycle without a helmet if they ride at less than 30km an hour for cultural/religious reasons (like wearing a saree or wearing flowers in their hair), is going viral. In the video, Perera also suggests that Sri Lanka should follow in these countries’ footsteps and allow this exception, especially in areas like Jaffna where women wear flowers in their hair on their visits to temples, or special occasions and more.
Newschecker decided to check the authenticity of the viral claim since Perera is also a widely known politician with an Economic Growth Strategy and Action Plan to revive Sri Lanka’s economy. He has suggested a solution based on this claim in this plan.
Fact check/Verification
The Newschecker team first double-checked if Perera had indeed made such a statement, and came across a live stream of a certificate ceremony of his educational institution, DP Education, held on 14 July 2024 in Galle.
One hour and seven minutes into the live stream, Perera suggests the following as a solution to reducing traffic offences in Jaffna (translated from Sinhala to English):
“According to the culture [in Jaffna] people have to wear flowers in their hair when going to a wedding or a temple. When they wear flowers in their hair they cannot wear a helmet to ride on the motorcycle. To find a solution to this, we need to look at what other countries have done in situations like this. What these countries have done is allow people wearing flowers in their hair to ride at a speed of less than 30km without a helmet. Also, in Jaffna, women who wear sarees cannot sit with their feet on the side of the motorcycle without getting caught for reckless driving. But in India and the UK, the 30km speed exception is given as a solution to these issues.”
Newschecker then looked into the relevant traffic laws pertaining to helmets and motorcycles in both India and England.
With regard to India, Newschecker noticed that Section 129 of The Motor Vehicles Act 1988 mentions that the law for protective headgear is as follows:
The only exception provided for the helmet law is cases where the rider is a Sikh and wears a turban.
Then, Newschecker looked at the Safety Helmets Law as specified in the NI Direct Government Services authority in the UK, which handles motor traffic. The site specifies that “On all journeys, the rider and pillion passenger on a motorcycle, scooter, moped or motor quadricycle, also called quadbike, must wear a protective helmet.” The rule does not apply “only to a follower of the Sikh religion while wearing a turban.”
Conclusion
The claim made by Dhammika Perera that in India and the UK, passengers are allowed to ride a motorcycle without a helmet if they ride at less than 30km an hour for cultural/religious reasons is false.
Result: Partly false
Our Sources
YouTube live stream of Dhammika Perera’s speech at the certificate ceremony of DP Education in Galle, held on July 14, 2024
Section 129 of The Motor Vehicles Act 1988 of India
Article on protective clothing and headgear while driving on the NI Direct Government Services authority website in the UK
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