Government ministers and Federated Farmers have
rejected the idea of banning children from riding quad bikes,
despite the death of a six-year-old girl at the weekend.
Auckland's Amber Taylor Vincent suffered fatal injuries when
her quad bike rolled on top of her at Thundercross Valley
Bike Park, near Glen Murray, Huntly, on Saturday afternoon.
Two ministers dismissed calls for reform. Labour Minister
Kate Wilkinson's spokesman said there were no plans for a
minimum riding age, while Transport Minister Stephen Joyce's
spokesman said quad bike safety on private land was not his
responsibility.
That was despite a coroner's report into the 2002 death of
eight-year-old Rebecca Brittain recommending age limits for
quadbikes. Research published in the New Zealand Medical
Journal in September found 16 children were killed and 216
hospitalised in quadbike crashes between 2000 and 2006.
Federated Farmers also said there was no need to enforce an
age restriction on the use of farm bikes.
Guidelines regarding the use such quad bikes say that
children under 12 should not be permitted to drive them.
Federation health and safety spokesperson Donald Aubrey told
Radio NZ it would be unnecessary to enforce an age
restriction.
Education was the key and it was important young people,
particularly between the ages of 12 and 15, were given proper
tuition when learning to ride all-terrain vehicles, he said.
James and Fiona Fowlie own the 300ha park, which attracts
off-road enthusiasts from Auckland and Waikato.
Competitive motocross rider Nick Fowlie also helps to run the
park.
He said the girl was at the park with her father.
"The bike went down a sort of a steep bank and it rolled on
top of her and the size of her... the bike crushed her head,
well, crushed her helmet, giving her brain injuries."
