Debate Rages on Age Restrictions for ATV Use

By Heather Siladi

Published on November 29, 2006

According to an ATV petition briefing by the Consumer Product Safety Commission in Washington D.C., approximately 5,800 children die each year in ATV-related accidents. About 120,000 children are permanently disabled by ATVs each year, and over 14 million children (one child out of every four who are riding ATVs) are injured seriously enough to seek emergency medical treatment.

Pediatrician and emergency room physician organizations throughout Canada and the United States are urging state and local governments to enact laws that would either prohibit minors from driving ATVs or enforce factory specifications for age and weight restrictions for different sized vehicles. Some counties have proposed mandatory rider training, but few have the resources to implement a large enough training program.

ATV dealers and parents argue that the decision to let children ride an ATV should be at the discretion of the parents, pointing out that children can also be injured on bicycles and climbing trees. Groups supporting ATV restrictions often point out seatbelt and child-safety-seat laws as examples of when matters of safety are not left to the discretion of parents.

Overall, more states like West Virginia, North Carolina, and Indiana are passing laws limiting or prohibiting ATV use by children.

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