Schumacher’s ski fall prompts helmet enquiries
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More British skiers and snowboarders will wear helmets on ski holidays this year after seeing how Michael Schumacher suffered from a fall on the slopes, ABTA has found.
A survey of the association’s members found more people are asking about safety equipment this year and many have been feared by Schumacher’s accident after he fell and hit his head on a rock while skiing in Meribel.
The Formula 1 driver was wearing a helmet when he fell in the ski resort but has been in a coma
since the incident occurred on 29 December.
ABTA said enquiries for safety equipment are being driven by younger travellers who are most
likely to take ski holidays, but are also continuing regulations they followed when they were growing up. In Austria and Italy it is now a legal requirement for children to wear helmets.
In 2013 America’s National Ski Areas Association said 70% of winter sports visitors wore a helmet while Switzerland said 76% of its skiers and snowboarders now wear helmets.
“Having the right equipment is an essential part of any winter sports holiday and ABTA urges all skiers and snowboarders to wear a helmet. We want people to be able to make the most of their time on the slopes and knowing you have the right kind of equipment is one less thing to
worry about,” said ABTA’s head of communications Victoria Bacon.
However the association continued to urge travellers to take out adequate insurance with 47%
of under 35s heading to the slopes without the appropriate travel insurance.
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