Off-road vehicles still not safe for children, adolescents: Paediatricians

OTTAWA – A third of off-road vehicle (ORV) deaths are in children and adolescents. In an updated statement, the Canadian Paediatric Society is educating health care providers and families on the risks and urging governments to implement more regulations in order to minimize paediatric deaths and injuries.

Even on low-speed ORVs there is a risk of losing control, especially when riding on paved roads which can lead to severe injuries or fatalities. The leading causes of death and disability in crashes include severe injuries from ejection from the ORV or from being trapped under a vehicle.

“These vehicles are becoming larger and faster resulting in more severe trauma, and we continue to see catastrophic injuries when children are riding as passengers as well.” said Dr. Suzanne Beno, Chair of the CPS Injury Prevention Committee and lead author of the new guidance. “The types and severity of injury we see from ORVs are similar to those resulting from motor vehicle collisions.” 

Should parents choose to allow their children to ride an ORV, helmet use, safety training, not riding with passengers and avoiding paved roads can reduce the chances of injury or death. 

“To really move the needle on this issue, we need to take a multi-pronged, evidence-based approach,” said Dr. Beno, a paediatric emergency medicine specialist and trauma medical director in Toronto. “All hands are needed—industry, government, and health authorities need to work together to keep kids safer.”

To reduce the disproportionate risk of severe injury and death faced by children and adolescents riding ORVs, the CPS recommends that:

• industry discontinue marketing and selling ORV models to children and adolescents under 16 years of age until safety modifications for ORVs have been implemented, tested, standardized, and proven to be effective in all Canadian settings.
• improve vehicle design and engineering safety features, as in the automotive industry, to reduce crash risks and address the large margin for driver error.
• The federal government legislate and enforce a regulatory framework and safety standards for ORVs comparable to those governing the automotive industry. 
• provincial and territorial governments legislate and enforce ORV use as for automobiles, across jurisdictions and applying both to public and private land, with adjustments to reflect essential transport needs (i.e., in rural and remote communities and for Indigenous hunting and fishing), or agricultural work. 
• paediatric health care providers to counsel on the significant risks of ORV use in children and adolescents, and on harm reduction practices.

The full statement can be accessed here on or after February 24. Information for parents and families is available here.

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About the Canadian Paediatric Society

The Canadian Paediatric Society is a national advocacy association that promotes the health needs of children and youth. Founded in 1922, the CPS represents more than 3,300 paediatricians, paediatric subspecialists and other child health professionals across Canada.