Bicycle Helmet Laws in New York City and New York State

New York State law requires certified headgear for children under 14 and anyone on a Class 3 e-bike, and the city adds a bike helmet law for working cyclists. Adults riding standard bicycles do not have to wear one under current regulations. If you are in a crash without protective headgear, the missing protection does not count toward your share of fault, even after a traumatic brain injury.

Who Must Wear a Bicycle Helmet in New York

Section 1238 of the Vehicle and Traffic Law sets out who must wear approved bicycle headgear when riding on the road.

• Children under 14. Every minor aged one to 13 must wear one on a bicycle, skateboard, in-line skates or a scooter (Section 1238(5)). Of the helmet laws on the books, this child safety requirement matters most to parents and guardians.
• Adults 14 and older. No regulation requires one on a standard bicycle unless you ride for a business, though NYC bicycle traffic regulations still apply to all bicyclists on the roadway. 
• Class 3 e-bike bicyclists. Bicyclists on these e-bikes must wear helmets at any age.
• Passengers. A guardian of a minor aged one to four must provide protective headgear and a separate seat, and an infant under one cannot ride.
• Young riders under 16. No one under 16 may operate any class of e-bike.

Do Delivery Cyclists Need a Helmet?

If you deliver by bicycle, Section 10-157 of the Administrative Code makes your employer supply your headgear to the federal safety standard. The business faces $100 to $250 in fines, and you face a $25 to $50 fine for not wearing one. 

A business that never supplied the protective equipment gives working cyclists an affirmative defense to that ticket, app platforms included. 

Are Helmets Required on E-Bikes?

Class 3 e-bikes are throttle-capable, assist up to 25 mph, and are legal only within the five boroughs. Class 1 and Class 2 e-bikes, which stop providing pedal assist at 20 mph, carry no adult headgear requirement. 

On the other hand, bicyclists on these lower-class e-bikes may still choose to wear helmets for protection against head injuries amid the hazards of busy streets alongside motorists, pedestrians and other people on the roadway. 

What Safety Standard Must a Bicycle Helmet Meet?

A certified helmet must meet safety standards set by the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the Snell Memorial Foundation, or the Safety Equipment Institute (VTL §1238(2-a)). Every helmet sold in the United States satisfies the federal CPSC standard. A properly sized helmet fits snugly with the chin straps and side straps fastened below each ear, or it fails its certification.

How Much Is a No-Helmet Ticket?

A no-helmet violation carries a civil fine of up to $50. The ticket goes to a parent or guardian, not the minor, only when an adult 18 years old or older is present; otherwise, the bicyclist is cited. A court can erase the fine two ways.

• Purchase. The court must waive it on proof you bought or rented protective headgear before your court date.
• Hardship. The court may waive it if you could not afford one, though not for a second Class 3 violation.

Are Free Bike Helmets Available, and Does Citi Bike Require One?

Citi Bike does not require adult bicyclists to wear helmets. The NYC Department of Transportation recommends one for bicycle safety on the roadway. Free bike helmets are available at DOT events. Bicycle helmets are a critical safety measure for people cycling in heavy traffic near motorists and pedestrians on city streets, and all bicyclists should weigh the risks before riding without one.

How Do Helmet Laws Differ Between New York City and New York State?

Bicyclists under 14 need headgear everywhere; three rules change beyond the five boroughs.

A county, town or village may require headgear of anyone 14 or older:

• Rockland County requires protective headgear of every bicyclist on bicycles, at any age, countywide.
• Suffolk County requires one on all e-bikes and e-scooters, regardless of how old the bicyclist is.
• Greenburgh requires one of every bicyclist inside the town’s unincorporated area.

Two 2026 Senate bills, S9361 for e-bike bicyclists statewide and S10054 for every cyclist in the five boroughs, would expand coverage; neither has passed. For information and assistance with New York State helmet laws in your area, check the local ordinance before cycling outside the five boroughs.

What Do Bicycle Accidents and Helmet Use Statistics Show?

The Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee’s latest data breakdown, for 2022, counted 50 deaths statewide from bicycle accidents, and 28 of those killed were not wearing proper headgear. Preliminary 2024 data count bicycle crashes and accidents, not deaths. That year, 49 bicycle collisions involving accidents with fatalities were recorded. 

Head injuries data and borough accident counts appear elsewhere on this page. Data from a 2017 review of 40 studies found wearing a helmet cut the odds of a fatal head injury by 65% and a serious one by 69%, confirming the importance of bicycle safety for all bicyclists.

Who Pays Your Medical Bills After a Bicycle Accident?

No-fault insurance, usually the motor vehicle policy, pays your medical bills and lost wages whether or not you wore protective headgear. It never covers a collision without a motor vehicle, such as a pothole on the roadway or a crash with another bicyclist on the sidewalk, and a hit-and-run goes through the Motor Vehicle Accident Indemnification Corporation. 

Does Riding Without a Helmet Reduce Your Compensation?

Riding without protective headgear does not count toward your share of fault for the accident, but whether it can cut your compensation depends on whether the law requires you to wear one under state law. For a minor under 14 or a Class 3 e-bike bicyclist, VTL §1238(7) is absolute, and an appeals court barred a driver from shifting that responsibility onto the parents. Failing to comply “shall not constitute contributory negligence or assumption of risk” and shall not “diminish or reduce the damages recoverable” in a personal injury or wrongful death claim.

On the other hand, an adult on a standard bicycle or a Class 1 or 2 e-bike gets no such shield. The First Department treats missing headgear like a missing seatbelt, which “does not go to comparative liability but rather to how damages, if any, should be assessed.” The defense carries the burden of proving protective headgear would have prevented some of the head injuries. That ruling binds trial courts statewide. Proving fault starts with the steps in BALG’s guide on what to do after a cycling accident. 

Does Your Share of Fault Bar Recovery After a Crash?

If your share of fault exceeds the driver’s, or exceeds all defendants’ combined, you now recover nothing. A budget bill added that bar to CPLR §1411 on 26 May 2026 for actions filed after that date, even for an older accident. It covers only no-fault claims, so a crash with no motor vehicle keeps the old provision, where fault only reduces damages.

An insurer claiming missing headgear worsened your injuries must prove it with evidence. Contact Bicycle Accident Lawyers Group, where a personal injury attorney can assist with your case, for a free case evaluation by phone or at our office on either side of the city. Our attorneys have experience with roadway collisions involving bicyclists.

Posted by Robert Goldwater

Robert Goldwater is a cyclist representing cyclists. He has practiced personal injury and wrongful death law for more than 20 years, graduating with Honors from Arizona State University Law School, and has helped recover over $1 billion for clients, including injured cyclists.

All articles by Robert Goldwater