UPDATED 12 noon: STATE Opposition says expanded rebates for quad bike safety do not go far enough and has repeated calls for a users summit.
Yesterday NSW Government doubled its rebate to offset the cost of replacing a quad bike with a side by side vehicle to $1000. It had also doubled from $250 to $500 its rebate for fitting roll-over protection to existing quad bikes.
But Labor spokesman Mick Veitch said the response was inadequate, given the recent deaths in NSW that have involved young children.
Mr Veitch said a quad safety summit was needed, bringing together stakeholders to try to prevent tragedies on NSW properties.
“Labor welcomes any additional funding to try to prevent these tragic deaths,” Mr Veitch said.
“Yet the government’s response has not addressed the deaths of young children as we have seen over recent months.
“The Government needs to bring together farmers, manufacturers, medical professionals and safety experts at a summit to work out ways to stop these tragic deaths.”
On Sunday two people were killed in separate incidents – a six-year-old girl in Pillaga and a 60-year-old man in Sofala – and a teenage girl flown to Sydney with serious head injuries.
This year five people have been killed in Australia in quad bike accidents and 111 since 2011.
The government’s Quad Bike Safety Improvement Program, introduced last July, gives farmers access to a one-off rebate to buy helmets, undertake training, retrofit safety equipment to existing quad bikes, and/or buy a safer side-by-side farm vehicle.
As per government’s announcement on Thursday, farmers who own more than one quad bike will also be eligible to apply for as many as two rebates.
A new, 12-minute, online quad bike safety presentation (www.safework.nsw.gov.au) is also online.
To qualify for the rebates, farmers are required to complete an online course, do a quad bike safety course, or interact with a SafeWork NSW officer.
A government spokesperson said interaction with a SafeWork NSW might be as simple as a short conversation at a field day.
“We understand farming is a tough and demanding business, and it can be difficult for property owners to drop everything to attend a training day or meet with a SafeWork inspector,” Mr Kean said.
“While these options will still be offered, this online teaching tool will allow farmers to access quad bike safety advice at a time that is most convenient to them and, more importantly, give them easier access to the rebates that might save their lives.”
Rebates under the quad bike program are administered by NSW Farmers.
