Since July 2000, motorbike riders have not had to follow a universal helmet law, wanting all riders, irrespective of age, to wear a helmet when operating their motorbikes. Now, Florida helmet laws and regulations state that riders over the age of 21 that have a minimum of $10,000 in health coverage can legally ride their motorcycles without putting on a helmet, a move which was regarded as a victory by many riders disappointed with universal helmet laws which had been in effect until that time.

Regardless of whether the move implies a clear victory or not is a matter of interpretation. While bikers can enjoy the road unencumbered by motorcycle helmets that are usually weighty and hot, a report by the Florida Department of Transportation indicates that motorcycle accidental injuries and also deaths have increased following repeal of the universal laws, prompting a few state authorities to reconsider the law.

The debate over universal helmet laws is not confined to Florida. Across the nation, universal helmet conditions have met with active opposition, and in recent years, several nations have taken off universal helmet laws entirely, while other enforce specific age or insurance guidelines which govern who should put on a helmet, and who can choose not to put on a helmet.

Before 1966, there were no motorcycle helmet regulations in any state. However the Highway Safety Act of that same year put an end to that, requiring the establishment of uniform safety programs for bikers across the country. Under this act, all nations were required to develop and implement laws and regulations which mandated the use of helmets by all motorbike riders. Countries that turned down to enact such legal guidelines faced losing s portion of federal government highway construction funds.

In 1975, with penalties pending against three states, Congress reconsidered the Highway Safety Act, and eradicated the helmet law mandate, as well as disallowing a suspension of federal funds from nations without universal helmet laws. The result: by 1978, 25 states had repealed their legal guidelines, or amended them to incorporate only certain groups, generally individuals under the age of 18.

The 1980s was, overall, a period of stasis for helmet regulations. However in the late 1980s and 1990s, many state governments began reenacting helmet laws in order to lessen injuries and deaths, and reduce insurance and medical costs. In 1989, Oregon and Texas yet again enforced universal helmet laws, and Washington and Maryland followed suit in 1990 and 1992. Even California, that had never before enacted a helmet law, passed a universal helmet law in 1992 after much hype. Florida also passed a helmet law, but in 1996 as mentioned, the law was amended to include only bikers under 21 and those without adequate insurance coverage.

The repeal immediately noticed a marked change in helmet use in the country. As observational helmet use survey conducted by the state DOT in 1998 revealed 99.5 percent of motorcycle bikers wore helmets. A similar survey conducted in 2002, two years after the repeal of the universal helmet law, pointed out that rate had dropped to 52.7 percent.

Another study conducted by the Florida DOT also discovered that though the overall number of crashes decreased during the 18-month period after the law was repealed as compared to the 19-month period before repeal, deadly crashes among the state's motorcycle riders elevated by roughly 43 percent after Florida helmet regulations were revised, from 284 deaths in the 18-month period before repeal, to 404 fatalities in the 18-month period after repeal. Non-fatal accidental injuries increased by around 16 percent in the same period. Even the numbers of under-age riders elevated after repeal of the law, from 7 percent to 11 percent.

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