What Age Can A Child Ride On The Back Of A Motorbike in The UK?
Surprisingly, there are no laws or limits to how old a motorcycle pillion should be, however utilising common sense and the child’s abilities to hold on to a motorcycle should help you to make a decision about if they should join you as a pillion. There are of course some legalities surrounding pillions also that we will cover.
When carrying a pillion they must be able to hold on to the motorcycle/rider at all times and be able to reach the foot pedals, the law states that:
“Every two-wheeled motor cycle for use on a road shall have suitable supports or rests for the feet of a person carried astride that motor cycle in addition to the driver. The supports or rests referred to shall be constructed so as to enable them to be reached by the feet of a person aged 10 of average height for that age.”
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If you find that you’re having to strap the child in to make sure they do not fall off because they cannot hold on tight enough and cannot reach the pedals, they shouldn’t be on the back of a motorcycle, this is the law.
There are some other major laws to keep into consideration, the first being around helmets which are the only legal piece of safety equipment that a motorcycle rider must wear. The helmet should be securely fastened with the chin strap done up and must be the correct size, said helmet must also meet the British standards for helmets.
If the pillion rider is under the age of 17-years-old then they must receive consent from the person who has parental responsibility over that person, if this doesn’t happen then an offence will have been committed.
Another legal requirement is that the rider must have a full motorcycle license in the category of either A1, A2 or A and must be insured to carry passengers on their motorcycle, if found to be carrying a passenger without adequate insurance, your insurance policy will be invalidated meaning if you get into an accident, you could be prosecuted for riding without insurance.
Other Requirements
There are of course some other requirements for riders that are non-legally binding but do help to improve the experience of the pillion.
Despite a helmet being the only legal requirement, we would recommend wearing all the protective clothing, especially if it is a child riding as a pillion, this includes boots, gloves, trousers and a motorcycle jacket, remember, dress for the slide, not the ride.
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The child must be able comfortably hold onto the rider or the passenger bars without any problems, at high speed this will be majorly important.
Do not exceed the maximum required weight limit set by the manufacturer for your motorcycle, doing so could damage the motorcycle and cause it to not behave as you’d expect it too. Extra weight causes the bike to move slower which can damage the engine over time, it also puts additional strain on the suspension and makes braking more difficult.
It’s also important to take note of the manufacturers recommendations which include adding pressure to the tyres to cope with the extra weight, thus improving your grip on the road.
Finally, we recommend giving the pillion some tips to help the experience go smoother including leading with the rider through corners, creating some signals and gestures to be able to communicate with one another such as a tap on the back/leg. When braking and accelerating the pillion needs to anticipate the movement and work around this such as pushing onto the fuel tank or leaning forward on acceleration and slightly back on braking to avoid clashing heads.
