Does Colorado Require Bicycle Helmets?

The Short Answer

There is no Colorado state law requiring riders of conventional human-powered bicycles to wear helmets — not for adults, not for minors. (For reference, Colorado defines a bicycle as a human-powered vehicle with two tandem wheels, or two parallel wheels and one forward wheel, all more than 14 inches in diameter. CRS 42-1-102(10).)

One note of caution: local municipalities may enact stricter rules, so check the municipal code where you ride. Since bike routes often cross different city and county lines, when in doubt, wear a helmet — even for a ride around the block.

The Class 3 E-Bike Exception

This is the only helmet mandate in Colorado's state law. It applies to Class 3 electrical assisted bicycles (e-bikes) — bikes with fully operable pedals and a motor up to 750 watts that assists only while you're pedaling and cuts out at 28 mph.

Who must wear a helmet: anyone under 18 — operator or passenger — must wear a helmet on their head and properly secured with a chin strap while the Class 3 e-bike is in motion. (C.R.S. § 42-4-1412(15)(b)).

What kind of helmet: the helmet must conform to U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) or American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) standards. Check for the certification label on the helmet — if there's no label, don't trust it. Read more about required federal helmet labels, warnings, and how to properly fit a bike helmet at our dedicated blog post How to Fit a Bike Helmet.

Related rule: no one under 16 may operate a Class 3 e-bike at all, except as a passenger on a bike designed for passengers. (C.R.S. § 42-4-1412(15)(a).)

Class 1 and 2 E-Bikes: No Requirement

There is no statewide helmet requirement for Class 1 or Class 2 e-bikes (again check local municipal rules though):

• Class 1 E-bike: motor assists only while pedaling, cuts out at 20 mph.
• Class 2 E-bike: motor assists whether or not you're pedaling, cuts out at 20 mph.

What If You Suffer a Head Injury and Weren't Wearing a Bicycle Helmet?

This is where it matters legally — and where the law is on your side:

• Regular pedal bike: the cyclist broke no state law, so not wearing a helmet is not evidence of negligence by a cyclist to reduce defendant's fault nor to reduce damages owed by a defendant for injuries they cause. This is well understood in Colorado case law by now. This is similar for motorcycles in Colorado, which is instructive on this point, and is supported by the Colorado Supreme Court case of Dare v. Sobule, 674 P.2d 960 (Colo. 1984). State statutes, rules of evidence, and case law would control here so if for some reason a local municipal code required a helmet, such evidence of a muni code violation should be excluded.
• Class 3 E-bike, under 18: the statute itself shuts the door. C.R.S. § 42-4-1412(15)(c) expressly provides that violating the helmet rule "does not constitute negligence or negligence per se" in a civil personal-injury case. This time the legislature barred the failure to wear a protective helmet defense for this exact violation making the exclusion of evidence of not wearing a helmet clear.

Insurers raise the helmet issue anyway, either not knowing Colorado law about bicycle helmets or counting on injured riders not knowing the law. Now you do.

Dan D'Angelo is a Colorado trial lawyer representing injured bicyclists and brain injury victims. If you were hurt in a bike crash — helmet or not — tap Contact for a free consult.

-Dan

Have a question about your case?

Attorney Dan D'Angelo offers free consultations for brain injury and cycling accident victims throughout Colorado.

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