France: compulsory reflective stickers on all helmets

[routemaster]

Hi

Some definitive answers for you.

Reflective clothing for motorcyclistsJanuary 2012
The French government announced that from 1 January 2013 all drivers and passengers of a motorcycle over 125cc or a motor tricycle over 15 KW/h must wear reflective clothing when riding their vehicles and in the event of an emergency stop/breakdown.

January 2013 - the French government announced that the law that made reflective equipment compulsory for motorcycle riders and passengers in France from 1 January has been abolished. The requirement was to have been that clothing must have a minimum reflective surface of 150cm2 (approx 23in2) in total, either in one piece or in several pieces, and must be worn between the neck and waist.

Breathalysers 1 March 2012 -
The French government confirmed that from 1 July 2012 drivers of all motor vehicles and motorcycles (excluding mopeds) must carry a breathalyser. The regulation will be enforced from 1 November 2012 and anyone stopped after that date who fails to produce a breathalyser when requested will receive an on the spot fine of €11.
October 2012 - the French government announced that the implementation of the sanction for drivers not carrying a breathalyser – a fine of €11 – has been postponed from 1 November 2012 to 1 March 2013.

January 2013 - the French government announced that the implementation of the sanction for drivers not carrying a breathalyser – a fine of €11 – has been postponed indefinitely.

So theoretically you are still required to carry a self-test breathalyser when driving in France but there is no current legislation demanding a fine for non-compliance.
The original official announcement stated that one unused, certified breathalyser must be produced showing the French certification mark NF. Carrying two single-use breathalysers will ensure that if one is used or damaged, you will still have a spare to produce. The breathalyser produced has to be in date - single-use breathalysers normally have a validity of twelve months.

Satnav and speed camera alerts
Since 3 January 2012 French laws have prohibited drivers from carrying any device capable of detecting speed cameras. This includes products or devices able to warn or inform of the location of speed cameras e.g. satnav or gps systems capable of showing speed camera sites as Points of Interest. The law is primarily aimed at speed camera detectors and sat-navs. It is unlikely that the French police will turn their attention to atlases but there is no guarantee this would be the case.

As well as the ban on  warning devices, the French government is installing around 400 new, unsigned, fixed speed cameras as well as taking down signs indicating the location of existing camera sites.

If you have a satnav capable of displaying French camera locations in France then you must at least disable camera alerts. Contact the manufacturer for advice too as a software or database update is likely to be available that will remove camera data for France from the device.

Kind regards

Steve

[beegee]

i'm in france almost every week (only 10 minutes from here ;-))  ; have never seen one yet...

is it already legislation ...?
the alcoholtest is also postpounded

[pistole]

- are there laws for car drivers to actually look where they're going ?

- maybe start there.

.

[O.C.]

The French aren't the only nation to have daft laws, which may have been in place for years, and may still be unworkable/unenforceable

Read this ...I particularly like the 'Longbow' idea 

http://him.uk.msn.com/in-the-know/articles.aspx?cp-documentid=155492380

[PCPeteUK]

If it really has been the law in France for over a decade and you risk a €130 fine without I am sure it would be mentioned on the AA website or similar sites I looked at. They all go on about light bulb kits , GB stickers if you don't have a EU plate, breatherlizers and whatnot but not a word about reflective stickers on helmets.  And in all the years I have been riding in France I have never seen anybody with such stickers.

Or is it April 1st already? 

Hi All, the link at the root of this thread came through to me only a day or so back - I understand this is a NEW law not something that .has been ignored in France for years. I have never noticed anyone in France with the helmet stickers on my previous trips. It is just that I wanted to find out from any of our group that live/work/travel en Francais that could enlighten us.

If true then I will leave my Scorpion at home and use my cheap £40 Lidle helmet and the link Deb's supplied for the A4 sheet to 'adjust' my helmet for the trip.

It certainly opened a can of worms

[Ros]

Yes, reflective stickers x4 is compulsory in France. I have ruined several helmets with them during my 12 years living there.

I have never heard of anyone being pulled for not having them though, but it is definitely a requirement.

There are also strict guidelines as to where on the helmet they have to be. I'll find a link when I'm in front of a real computer...

Cheers

Ros

[Richard]

Hi

Anyone know if a helmet is required in France when you are on a trike?
We usually wear one here, but its not a legal requirement.

Thanks

Richard

[mecki]

Anyone know if a helmet is required in France when you are on a trike?
We usually wear one here, but its not a legal requirement.

According to this http://www.trikedoctor.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=5872 you need to wear a helmet in France and also need all the stuff cars have to carry.
I always thought trikes unlike bikes with sidecar are classified as cars.

[Richard]

According to this http://www.trikedoctor.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=5872 you need to wear a helmet in France and also need all the stuff cars have to carry.
I always thought trikes unlike bikes with sidecar are classified as cars.

Trikes, from what I have found so far, depending on which law you are looking at can be cars, motorcycles, trikes and maybe a few other things I have not found yet 

[Debs]

I have had a reply from Schuberth re stickers on their helmets.. Unfortunately they sent ,e q black & white pic 

Dear Deborah,

Thank you for your e-mail. You may put the reflective sticker on every side of your helmet. Attached we will send you a instruction how and where you can place the reflective stickers for France.

Please only use stickers which you could also affix to car paints. You must always make perfectly certain that the adhesive is solvent-free. Schuberth accepts no liability for this.
For further questions do not hesitate to contact us again.

Mit freundlichen Grüssen,
best regards

Schuberth GmbH

[Wirralmark]

I have had a reply from Schuberth re stickers on their helmets.. Unfortunately they sent ,e q black & white pic 

Dear Deborah,

Thank you for your e-mail. You may put the reflective sticker on every side of your helmet. Attached we will send you a instruction how and where you can place the reflective stickers for France.

Please only use stickers which you could also affix to car paints. You must always make perfectly certain that the adhesive is solvent-free. Schuberth accepts no liability for this.
For further questions do not hesitate to contact us again.

Mit freundlichen Grüssen,
best regards

Schuberth GmbH

Thanks for that Deb. I'm still not going to attach them to my C3 but its good to know for future reference.

Mark

[garfield1974]

I was planning to take a ride to Spain from Croatia, but reading all above I think I will take ferry from Italy to Spain. 

[Kevin]

Hi All, the link at the root of this thread came through to me only a day or so back - I understand this is a NEW law not something that .has been ignored in France for years. I have never noticed anyone in France with the helmet stickers on my previous trips. It is just that I wanted to find out from any of our group that live/work/travel en Francais that could enlighten us.

If true then I will leave my Scorpion at home and use my cheap £40 Lidle helmet and the link Deb's supplied for the A4 sheet to 'adjust' my helmet for the trip.
It certainly opened a can of worms

If you read the text in that link it says:

there has been for some time another (stupid) piece of legislation forcing all bikers in France, whether residents or visitors, to wear a helmet with reflective stickers on, and this one has not been scrapped.

I've highlighted the relevant part. What seems to have triggered the recent flurry of internet activity about this is some Parisian Police taking it into their heads to start enforcing it.

I thought it came in in the 90s but the earliest mention I could find of it on-line was 2006 so I emailed the FFMC to ask. Their response said:

The article R431-1 of our "code de la route" states that all riders and passengers of motorbikes must wear an approved helmet and the helmet must be attached. The text does not mention exemptions for foreign drivers. We can deduce that English drivers are subject to this regulation when they ride in France.

Certification standards helmets are the same in France and England. They are described in Regulation 22-05 which leaves to each State choosing or not to impose the wearing of retroreflective elements.

France has chosen to enforce these stickers. Therefore a helmet that does not have its stickers is deemed unauthorized and justifies the verbalization of the rider (fine of 135 €)

They went on to confirm there had been some recent enforcement near Paris but that seems to have stopped and they are not aware of any non-French motorcyclists being penalised.

I then asked when this law had been introduced and the response was:

This regulation is into effect since 1st march 1976.

If some of us would prefer to believe what it says on the the AA web site that's up to them.

Kevin

[PCPeteUK]

Thanks Kevin - I'll just ignore it as usual then 

[Kevin]

Thanks Kevin - I'll just ignore it as usual then 

We've been riding in France since the early 80s and have always ignored it but please don't blame me if some officious policeman decides to stop you!

Kevin