According to a governmental decree that was issued last year, drivers of motorbikes, electric motorcycles, and electric bicycles who wear their helmets incorrectly will be fined up to VND200,000 ($9.4) as of July 1, 2014. According to Article 6.3 of Decree 171/ND-CP of November 13, 2013, a fine of VND100,000-200,000 will be applied to those driving or riding motorbikes without crash helmets or with helmets worn incorrectly.

Wearing one’s helmet “incorrectly” includes: wearing a helmet without fastening the chinstrap, letting the fastened strap hang loose from the chin, and wearing the helmet in such a way that it can be taken off one’s head easily by pulling up the front or the back of the helmet. In speaking with Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper about the new rule, Senior Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Hoang Diep, deputy head of Ho Chi Minh City Police’s railway and road police department, said the city police will strictly punish all violators of the regulation.

The official also said this new rule is not applied to children under six years old, people who are carried on bikes to health facilities for emergency aid, and law offenders who are being escorted on bikes.

In addition to a pecuniary fine, violators under 16 years old (but at least 6 or over) will also have their vehicles impounded for seven days, and those who are students will be turned in to their school’s management, he added.