Maine: Do adults have to wear motorcycle helmets?
Maine requires helmets for riders under 18, new riders on a permit or in their first licensed year, and their passengers.
Adult operators who have held a license for more than a year, and their adult passengers, may ride without a helmet. Any passenger of a rider who must wear a helmet must wear one too. The rule also covers mopeds, but not autocycles.
Conditions
- Helmet required under 18 (operators and passengers)
- Helmet required on a learner's permit or within one year of passing the driving test
- Passengers of those riders must wear helmets
What the law says
The following persons must wear protective headgear: A. If under 18 years of age, a passenger on a motorcycle or moped or in an attached side car; B. If under 18 years of age, an operator of a motorcycle or moped; C. An operator of a motorcycle or moped, operating under a learner's permit or within one year of successfully completing a driving test; and D. A passenger of an operator required to wear headgear.
Sources
- 29-A M.R.S. § 2083 Official · legislature.maine.gov
Confirm with the state
- Agency
- Maine Bureau of Highway Safety (Department of Public Safety)
- Website
- maine.gov
How bordering states compare
- New Hampshire Only some ridersNew Hampshire requires helmets only for motorcycle riders under 18.