Wiggle selling Helmets to Australians. Is this legal?

[Gistane]

From my understanding in Australia we can not buy helmets from overseas as they would not have the Australian standard sticker which I understand is a requirement by law here to be an acceptable helmet for us to use.

During the TDU i noticed the Wiggle commercial and this talks about using Wiggle to buy a helmet. Wouldn't this make the ad misleading if by law we can not actually use the helmet here?

Or has something passed in the laws that we can use helmets bought from overseas now?

Perhaps Wiggle does have helmets that have passed Australian standards?

 

[hughmoore]

From my understanding in Australia we can not buy helmets from overseas as they would not have the Australian standard sticker which I understand is a requirement by law here to be an acceptable helmet for us to use.

During the TDU i noticed the Wiggle commercial and this talks about using Wiggle to buy a helmet. Wouldn't this make the ad misleading if by law we can not actually use the helmet here?

Or has something passed in the laws that we can use helmets bought from overseas now?

Perhaps Wiggle does have helmets that have passed Australian standards?

They will sell you one, it wont have the sticker. Perhaps you can email them and ask now they are advertising on TV. Maybe they are putting stickers on now.


Hugh

 

[ultimobici]

They will sell you one, it wont have the sticker. Perhaps you can email them and ask now they are advertising on TV. Maybe they are putting stickers on now.


Hugh

I was under the impression that the only way to get the sticker was to import row helmets into Australia. So basically the Australian authorities test helmets pulled from the actual shipment.

 

[Bustedknuckle]

From my understanding in Australia we can not buy helmets from overseas as they would not have the Australian standard sticker which I understand is a requirement by law here to be an acceptable helmet for us to use.

During the TDU i noticed the Wiggle commercial and this talks about using Wiggle to buy a helmet. Wouldn't this make the ad misleading if by law we can not actually use the helmet here?

Or has something passed in the laws that we can use helmets bought from overseas now?

Perhaps Wiggle does have helmets that have passed Australian standards?

Is there a helmet law in Australia?

 

[Stingray34]

Is there a helmet law in Australia?

Yes, for the last 21 or so years helmets have been compulsory for all cyclists. The helmets have to pass a standard. It was just updated in July last year and bike shops could no longer sell their helmet inventory unless they bought a new shipment which had passed the new standard. Bike shops were literally tossing away $300 helmets...in dumpsters.

 

[Stingray34]

BTW I got my helmet in Italy a few years ago, so everytime you see me ride I'm:

This is exactly how I feel everytime I see a panda.

 

[Llewellyn]

Yes, for the last 21 or so years helmets have been compulsory for all cyclists. The helmets have to pass a standard. It was just updated in July last year and bike shops could no longer sell their helmet inventory unless they bought a new shipment which had passed the new standard. Bike shops were literally tossing away $300 helmets...in dumpsters.

That is unforgiveable, but typical. Usually when they introduce a law the manufacturers, retailers etc are allowed to clear existing stock. Obviously bike stores don't have much clout.

I got a Giro Atmos from the UK and the only difference I could find compared to one I bought here is that it had a little sticker pointing out which direction was the front Apart from that, the straps were the same thickness, the polystyene was the same thickness, looked exactly the same. Although I'm sure some jobsworth in Standards Australia will claim that the Oz standard is superior.

BTW, I was surprised to see that Wiggle ad, my guess is that some bike shops might not be too happy that they're advertising on the telly now

As far as I'm concerned, if it's good enough for them to wear in the Tour, then it's good enough to go on my head

 

[42x16ss]

From my understanding in Australia we can not buy helmets from overseas as they would not have the Australian standard sticker which I understand is a requirement by law here to be an acceptable helmet for us to use.

During the TDU i noticed the Wiggle commercial and this talks about using Wiggle to buy a helmet. Wouldn't this make the ad misleading if by law we can not actually use the helmet here?

Or has something passed in the laws that we can use helmets bought from overseas now?

Perhaps Wiggle does have helmets that have passed Australian standards?

The only time that you MIGHT have an issue with a helmet purchased overseas is when there is an unusually strict commissaire at a race who insists on checking all helmets are standards compliant (VERY rare).

Their argument is generally this:

"Your helmet may be exactly the same as that guys there, but we don't know if it's geniune as it doesn't have anything showing that it has passed Aus standards - therefore if you crash then you may not be covered by Cycling Aus"

Then again, by buying a helmet from a LBS you know for sure that it is legit and not some Chinese "copy"....

 

[dsut4392]

Legal for Wiggle as an non-Australian business to sell them, legal for an Australian to buy them, legal to import them for personal use, not legal to ride on a public Australian road with them (unless they carry the AS/NZ standards approval sticker) You can however ride off-road, or on private roads without issue.

Any number of parallels, consider guns, lasers, pharmaceuticals, counterfeit goods etc, which can be legally bought and sold in other jurisdictions but not imported to Australia.

However, unless Wiggle are selling standards-approved helmets, it's NOT legal to advertise them for sale here, this would contravene trade practices act being deceptive advertising if the product cannot legally be used for the advertised purpose.

Is it a different helmet to the one with the sticker? Highly unlikely.
Is anyone ever going to check? Also highly unlikely (sanctioned races perhaps excepted). Most police can't even be bothered fining those who don't wear a helmet at all, let alone asking a sweaty cyclist to take off their sweaty helmet to look for a sticker.

What is more questionable is "torpedo7.com.au" selling non-approved helmets as they do maintain a local web-store and ship some product from Australian warehouses, although the parent business is in NZ.

Neither of my current helmets have the sticker...

 

[BroDeal]

Buy one, make a fake sticker, and it's all good.

I don't think Giro makes helmets for the Australian market that are different than those for other markets.

 

[42x16ss]

Buy one, make a fake sticker, and it's all good.

I don't think Giro makes helmets for the Australian market that are different than those for other markets.

They don't.

The thing is the Aus Standards sticker is VERY hard to counterfeit.

 

[BroDeal]

They don't.

The thing is the Aus Standards sticker is VERY hard to counterfeit.

Why? Is it hologram thing or what? Why can't you just whip one up with Photoshop and print it or scan one and touch it up.

Are the stickers really just a way to put a tax on helmets? Increasing the cost of helmets would seem a tad counterproductive as far as safety goes. In fact it seems assinine.

 

[42x16ss]

The stickers are made from reflective foil and have tamper evident adhesive on the back. If you try and take out your sticker to put it into another helmet, you will leave VOID spelled out in big adhesive letters on your old helmet and big spaces on the back of your sticker.

We don't pay sales tax on imported goods under $1000 so this probably stops some money from going overseas as well. A lot of people see this as yet another case of Australian over regulation gone wild.

 

[stefank]

One concern about using a stickerless helmet is that it may give an insurance company an excuse not to pay out (or to reduce the pay out) in the event of an accident involving head injuries. "Sorry, but it was your fault, you should have worn an approved helmet".

They will do their best to find a legal loophole to avoid payment.

 

[Bustedknuckle]

Yes, for the last 21 or so years helmets have been compulsory for all cyclists. The helmets have to pass a standard. It was just updated in July last year and bike shops could no longer sell their helmet inventory unless they bought a new shipment which had passed the new standard. Bike shops were literally tossing away $300 helmets...in dumpsters.

Wow, amazing.

 

[SpannerBender]

I would suggest then that most World Tour Australian pros training back home will be at odds with the law as I doubt their sponsors helmets have been cleared specifically.

So is there a waiver for competitors in the TDU?

 

[Fiemme]

I would suggest then that most World Tour Australian pros training back home will be at odds with the law as I doubt their sponsors helmets have been cleared specifically.

So is there a waiver for competitors in the TDU?

World Tour riders are insured under the UCI and get exemptions within Australia.

 

[simo1733]

One concern about using a stickerless helmet is that it may give an insurance company an excuse not to pay out (or to reduce the pay out) in the event of an accident involving head injuries. "Sorry, but it was your fault, you should have worn an approved helmet".

They will do their best to find a legal loophole to avoid payment.

Is Australia the only country in the world that does not except American/European standards for helmets?I know that there is a British standard for cycling helmets that polystyrene helmets cannot pass, However it is not mandatory.

 

[rickshaw]

you may be right...

Buy one, make a fake sticker, and it's all good.

I don't think Giro makes helmets for the Australian market that are different than those for other markets.

I think you're on to something. start a sweet little business counterfeiting safety approved stickers (or whatever they're called).

Just a thought.

More fun than debating the merits of water bottle cages...

 

[dsut4392]

That is unforgiveable, but typical. Usually when they introduce a law the manufacturers, retailers etc are allowed to clear existing stock. Obviously bike stores don't have much clout.

Shops got several months notice at least, I know all my LBS had them on clearance for a while before it came into effect. If any shop resorted to putting their $300 helmets in dumpsters instead of clearing them out at near wholesale cost, that was most likely a commercial decision.

 

[Martin318is]

actually, I could be wrong on this but the last time I discussed this with someone they pointed out that the Aus helmets are actually a denser foam than the Euro ones - at the time I doubted it but it did appear correct given the same Giro models had different claimed weights in Aus and England.

(not saying the whole thing isnt stupid, just thinking that there a little more to it than just the sticker - for some brands at least)

 

[BroDeal]

actually, I could be wrong on this but the last time I discussed this with someone they pointed out that the Aus helmets are actually a denser foam than the Euro ones - at the time I doubted it but it did appear correct given the same Giro models had different claimed weights in Aus and England.

(not saying the whole thing isnt stupid, just thinking that there a little more to it than just the sticker - for some brands at least)

I have a hard time believing that Giro would produce special versions of their helmets just for the Australian market, which is tiny compared to the rest of the world.

 

[Alex Simmons/RST]

World Tour riders are insured under the UCI and get exemptions within Australia.

Also, local track riders in solo track events (e.g. pursuit, kilo) are permitted to use helmets in competition that have nth american or euro standards stickers. This widens the choice of aero helmets for those events, however they are not permitted for solo road events such as a time trial.

 

[Martin318is]

I have a hard time believing that Giro would produce special versions of their helmets just for the Australian market, which is tiny compared to the rest of the world.

____ if I know - its just what I was told and the info seemed at the time to support it (about 3 years ago). It´d only involve leaving the injector on for an extra half second I would imagine to get the denser foam...

 

[durianrider]

You can easily get a sticker off an old helmet and glue it onto the wiggle special you saved 250$ on.

No wonder people are buying OS. Its so much cheaper for stuff that is made for 50c in China and the profits are used to fund pro athletes and their million $ incomes to buy the latest Ferrari.