Motorcycle Helmet Safety Ratings Explained

Walk into any motorcycle shop and you’ll likely see a wall full of helmets for sale. Obviously a helmet is a vital piece of safety gear you that shouldn’t skimp out on, but which one should you pick? Beyond deciding on the graphic you like and making sure the fit is correct, the main consideration should be which safety rating the helmet meets. But this can be tricky – rookies and veterans alike can have a hard time wrapping their heads around the different ratings. And what do they even mean, anyway? It turns out, they mean a lot. It’s literally the difference between a potentially life-saving device and a decoration. Understanding motorcycle helmet safety ratings is crucial for riders. These ratings indicate that a helmet has passed certain tests and meets specific safety standards. Here's a breakdown of what those ratings mean.

DOT (Department of Transportation)

The DOT rating is the baseline safety standard for motorcycle helmets in the United States.

• All helmets sold in the US must meet DOT standards, as defined by the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) 218.
• DOT certification means the helmet meets minimum requirements for impact resistance, penetration, and retention.
• More specifically, this means the helmet must have chin straps that are strongly attached to ensure the helmet stays on in a crash.
• It must have an inner liner that’s at least 0.75-inch thick, usually made from polystyrene foam.
• The visor must provide a minimum of 105º of peripheral vision.
• Peak acceleration transferred to the head during impact must not exceed 400Gs, and the period of time which an acceleration pulse exceeds 200Gs can’t be longer than two milliseconds, nor can the period of time when a pulse exceeds 150Gs be longer than four milliseconds.
• The DOT sticker is typically found on the back of the helmet. However, be cautious – there are many novelty helmets with fake DOT stickers (or no stickers at all) that are nothing more than head coverings and certainly won’t protect you in an impact.
• DOT “certification” relies on random testing after a helmet is already on the market and self-certification, which opens the door for counterfeit “DOT approved” helmets to make it to shops.

• ECE certification is common in Europe and many other countries worldwide.
• ECE standards often include more rigorous testing than DOT.
• Helmets with ECE certification are generally considered to offer a high level of protection. This is because the ECE incorporates more realistic testing scenarios, like testing for abrasion resistance, chin strap strength, and impact testing on various anvils.
• There are also tests for face shield penetration, optical quality, and more.
• ECE 22.05 also requires each helmet model get tested before being sold on the market to ensure quality and safety.
• ECE 22.06 was implemented at the end of 2023 and incorporates more rigorous testing. This includes testing at more impact points, with an expanded range of speeds.
• Crucially, there is now a rotational acceleration test to help mitigate brain injuries like CTE.
• The helmet retention system is also tested more thoroughly as well, to simulate more real-world scenarios.

Snell

The Snell Memorial Foundation is a private, non-profit organization that tests and certifies helmets. Snell has two certification standards: M2020 and M2020R.

• Snell certifications are voluntary and often seen as an additional layer of safety assurance.
• Snell tests are typically more demanding than DOT or ECE tests and include impact testing over various surfaces, at different speeds. Each time the absorption capability is measured.
• Snell also includes retention strap performance using heavier weights than DOT testing.
• Penetration testing is also done, and so is a fit test, chin bar test, and faceshield penetration test.
• The M2020R standard is more closely aligned with ECE 22.05, with more similar testing for helmets sold in Europe.

There’s debate out there about which standard is better than another, but that’s not the scope of what this article is about. Always check for the certification stickers (and date of manufacture stickers) inside or on the back of the helmet, because no matter which camp riders fall on regarding safety standards, we can all agree that a helmet that meets even the least stringent standards is better than one that doesn’t.

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