Quad bikes are a leading cause of death on Australian properties, with 220 deaths in the past 16 years, and thousands more injured in accidents.

From late July, a raft of rebates will be on offer to encourage farmers to better protect themselves and their workers.

Included in the rebates are up to $500 towards the purchase of compliant helmets, Operator Protective Devices (crush protective devices), the purchase of a safer vehicle (such as a side-by-side vehicle) and training courses tailored to farmers.

Mick Muldoon, from Mick Muldoon Motorcycles, welcomed the rebates and said they would help farmers better protect themselves.

“It’ll encourage people to look at their safety a bit more,” he said.

Mr Muldoon said rebates for side-by-side vehicles were particularly important as, while these vehicles offered more safety features than a quad bike, they were more expensive.

“It can carry two to three people, even up to six people safely in a side-by-side,” he said.

“The machine can carry more equipment and tools and it also has a roof and screen so it’s better in the weather.”

Mr Muldoon said side-by-sides carry a range of mandatory safety equipment, including seat belts, side nets, roll-over protection and some models also have a speed limiter if the seat belts are not buckled in.

Beard Brothers Motorcycles’ owner Nathan Beard said training was the best way to improve rider safety on a quad bike.

“If people know how to ride they’ll be doing it safer ... a bike doesn’t roll over by itself,” he said.

Farmsafe Australia chair Charles Armstrong said NSW was leading the way when it came to quad bike safety reforms.

“The provision of rebates to assist farmers in NSW to improve quad bike safety is a game changer,” he said.

The Quad Bike Safety Improvement Program was developed by SafeWork NSW, with rebates offered by the NSW Government.

The announcement follows world-leading research on quad bike safety funded by SafeWork NSW and carried out by the University of NSW.

n Rural Notebook, page 10