Is a 20 Year Old Motorcycle Helmet Still Good?

No. If a motorcycle helmet is 20 years old, I would not use it for riding.

It might look immaculate. It might have spent most of its life in a cupboard. It might even still have that slightly odd new-helmet smell.

That does not mean I would trust it with my head.

A motorcycle helmet is made from several different materials that all have a job to do. The outer shell, impact-absorbing liner, retention system, comfort padding, adhesives and other components all age, wear and react to use and storage differently.

Twenty years is a very long time for a piece of protective equipment whose one important job is to work properly on the worst day of your riding life.

How Long Does a Motorcycle Helmet Last?

There is no single lifespan that applies to every motorcycle helmet made by every manufacturer.

However, you will often hear riders talking about the five-year rule. That has not simply appeared out of thin air.

For example, SHOEI currently recommends replacing its helmets after around five years of normal use, care and storage. The manufacturer explains that although the outer shell can be extremely resistant to ageing, the performance of the impact-absorbing EPS liner can change over the years.

Other manufacturers have their own recommendations, so the correct advice is always to check the guidance for your particular make and model.

What I would not do is turn five years into some magical countdown where a helmet is perfect at four years and 364 days and turns into a pumpkin the following morning.

Usage, condition, storage, impacts and manufacturer guidance all matter.

But at 20 years old, we are not arguing about whether a helmet has another six months left in it. It is well beyond the normal service life recommended for modern motorcycle helmets.

Do Motorcycle Helmets Actually Expire?

Motorcycle helmets do not normally have an expiry date in quite the same way as a pint of milk.

What they have is a service life.

During that time the helmet can be affected by things including:

• Normal wear and tear.
• Sweat and oils from your skin and hair.
• Heat and temperature changes.
• UV exposure.
• Incorrect cleaning products or solvents.
• Repeated fitting and removal.
• Compression and wear of the comfort lining.
• Damage to the chin strap or retention system.
• Impacts or accident damage.

Some of these are obvious. Others are not.

That last point is important. Looking at an old helmet and saying, “It looks alright to me” is not the same as knowing how it would perform in an accident.

What Is the EPS Liner and Why Does It Matter?

Underneath the shell of most motorcycle helmets is an impact-absorbing liner, usually made from expanded polystyrene or EPS.

This is not the soft, removable padding that touches your head.

The EPS is part of the helmet's protective structure. Its job is to manage energy during an impact.

That distinction matters because riders sometimes look inside an older helmet, see that the fabric lining still looks tidy and assume the important bits must be fine too.

They are two completely different things.

You can often replace worn cheek pads or comfort liners on a modern helmet. You cannot make a 20-year-old protective structure new again by sticking a fresh set of cheek pads into it.

What If the Helmet Is 20 Years Old but Has Never Been Used?

This is where the question becomes more interesting.

Imagine somebody finds a helmet that was bought years ago, put back into its box and forgotten about. It has never been crashed, never been rained on and hardly been worn.

Would I ride in it?

No.

Storage can obviously make a massive difference to condition, but unused does not mean time has stopped.

Helmet manufacturers take age into account as well as use. SHOEI, for example, bases parts of its warranty period on both purchase date and manufacture date.

A 20-year-old new-old-stock helmet might make an interesting display piece, especially if it is a rare race replica or discontinued design. I just wouldn't choose it instead of a modern helmet to protect my head.

Is a 20 Year Old Motorcycle Helmet Illegal in the UK?

Not simply because it is 20 years old.

This is where legal and sensible need separating.

Current UK Government guidance says helmets used on UK roads must meet an accepted standard. These include BS 6658:1985 with the appropriate BSI Kitemark, ECE 22.05 and the newer ECE 22.06 standard.

You can read more about the current requirements in our guide to how to tell if a motorcycle helmet is road legal in the UK.

ECE 22.05 helmets have not suddenly become illegal to wear just because ECE 22.06 exists.

But that does not mean every old ECE 22.05 helmet should continue being used indefinitely.

A helmet can potentially carry an accepted approval marking and still be old, damaged, badly fitting or well past the manufacturer's recommended service life.

Legal does not automatically mean wise.

Has Helmet Safety Improved in 20 Years?

Absolutely.

Helmet design has moved on significantly over the past two decades. We now have newer testing standards, improved shell construction, more sophisticated impact liners, better visor systems and a huge amount of development around fit, aerodynamics and comfort.

The current ECE 22.06 standard also introduced a more demanding testing regime than the older ECE 22.05 approval.

That does not mean every expensive modern helmet is automatically safer than every cheaper helmet. We recently looked at exactly that question in our guide Are Expensive Motorcycle Helmets Actually Safer?.

But if I had the choice between putting my head into a decent current helmet or trusting one that left the factory when flip phones were still impressive, it would not take me very long to decide.

When Should You Replace a Motorcycle Helmet?

Age is only one reason to retire a helmet.

I would seriously consider replacing a helmet if:

• It has been involved in an accident or significant impact.
• The shell is cracked or damaged.
• The EPS liner shows signs of damage or deterioration.
• The chin strap or fastening system is damaged.
• The helmet has become noticeably loose through wear.
• The lining or internal components are deteriorating.
• It has been exposed to inappropriate chemicals, solvents or excessive heat.
• You do not know its history.
• It has reached or passed the replacement period recommended by its manufacturer.

A helmet does not need to look as though it has been dragged behind the bike before replacement becomes sensible.

Can I Replace the Liner and Keep Using an Old Helmet?

Replacing the removable comfort lining can be perfectly sensible on a helmet that is otherwise within its service life and where the manufacturer supplies approved replacement parts.

It can improve comfort and restore the fit where the original pads have compressed.

But it does not reset the age of the helmet.

The soft comfort lining and the structural EPS impact liner are not the same thing.

If you're struggling with the fit of a newer helmet, have a look at our guide to what you can and cannot safely adjust on a tight motorcycle helmet.

What About Buying a Second-Hand Motorcycle Helmet?

This is one reason I am very cautious about used helmets.

You may know how old it is. What you often do not know is what has happened to it.

Has it been involved in a crash? Has it been dropped heavily? Has somebody attacked the inside with a hairdryer because it felt tight? Has it spent ten summers sitting in direct sunlight in the back of a van?

You are relying heavily on the previous owner telling you the complete story.

For something designed to protect your head, that's quite a lot of trust to place in somebody you've just met in a car park.

How Do I Find Out How Old My Helmet Is?

The location of the manufacturing information varies between manufacturers and models.

Look inside the helmet around the chin strap, labels and beneath removable sections of the comfort liner where the manufacturer permits removal.

If you're unsure, contact the helmet manufacturer or a knowledgeable dealer with the exact make and model.

Do not start pulling glued sections of EPS out of the helmet looking for a date stamp. Taking the helmet apart is a fairly poor way of checking whether it is safe.

So, Is a 20 Year Old Helmet Still Good?

It might still be good as a souvenir. I wouldn't use it as a motorcycle helmet.

There is a difference between something looking good and something being suitable as protective equipment.

If a helmet is 20 years old, its history may be uncertain, its materials are far beyond the normal service life recommended by major helmet manufacturers and helmet safety standards have moved on considerably since it was made.

Keep the old race replica on a shelf if it means something to you. Hang it in the garage. Tell everybody how much cheaper petrol was when you bought it.

Then put a modern, correctly fitting helmet on your head when you actually go riding.

Choosing a Replacement Motorcycle Helmet

You do not have to spend £700 to buy a good motorcycle helmet.

Start with a helmet that meets the appropriate current safety standard, suits your type of riding and, most importantly, fits your head correctly.

A helmet should feel evenly snug and should remain securely in position when you move your head. It should not slide around independently, but it should not create painful pressure points either.

Different makes and models fit differently, even when the size printed on the label is identical.

That is why trying helmets properly is worthwhile.

At RaceLeathers in Darwen we can help you compare different makes, models, sizes and internal shapes rather than simply measuring your head and handing you a box marked Medium.

You can browse our full range of motorcycle helmets online, or call into the shop and let us help you get the fit right.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you use a 20 year old motorcycle helmet?

I wouldn't. A helmet that old is well beyond the normal replacement period recommended by major manufacturers, regardless of how tidy it appears externally.

Is a 10 year old motorcycle helmet still safe?

Ten years is also beyond the normal service-life guidance given by many helmet manufacturers. Check the manufacturer's specific recommendation, the helmet's history and condition, but I would be looking to replace it rather than trying to squeeze another few years from it.

Does a motorcycle helmet expire if it has never been used?

Age still matters even when a helmet has seen little or no use. Manufacturers may consider both time in use and manufacture date in their guidance. A very old new-old-stock helmet is not something I would choose for riding.

Is ECE 22.05 still legal in the UK?

Yes. At the time of writing, UK Government guidance still lists both ECE 22.05 and ECE 22.06 among the accepted motorcycle helmet standards for road use. The age and condition of the individual helmet still matter.

Should a motorcycle helmet be replaced after an accident?

Yes. If the helmet has protected your head during an accident or significant impact, follow the manufacturer's guidance and replace it. Damage that affects protection is not necessarily obvious from the outside.

Can new cheek pads make an old helmet safe again?

No. Replacement cheek pads and comfort liners can restore the fit and comfort of a suitable helmet, but they do not renew the shell or impact-absorbing EPS liner and they do not reset the helmet's age.