TFGA welcomes quad bike roll bar rebates for farmers, continues calls for safety measure to be mandatory

The government included a $500,000 rebate scheme in the budget, in which farm businesses were eligible for up to $1000 to fit roll bars on their quad bikes.

There are an estimated 4000 quad bikes in Tasmania, but the government has no figure on how many have been fitted with roll bars.

TFGA board member, and Safe Farming Tasmania chair, Corey Spencer said making the roll bars mandatory was the best way to save lives, and the rebate scheme would help to approach that aim.

"I would hope in time that roll bars would become mandatory," he said.

"I can see the manufacturers are reluctant to want to do it, but at some point in time I think if the government legislated to do it, then they would have no choice but to do it."

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The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission last year proposed law changes at a national level to mandate the use of roll bars, which was welcomed by the TFGA.

The ACCC is continuing its attempt to introduce quad bike safety improvements and safety ratings, a process the Tasmanian government is participating in.

The budget also included $200,000 for an education campaign targeting quad bike safety for children.

Minister for building and construction Sarah Courtney said the government would continue to work with stakeholders to enforce safe farm practices.

"We're going to continue working with the TFGA as well as Safe Farming and Work Safe Tasmania to ensure there is compliance with safe practices on farms," she said.

"We will continue to work with the TFGA on enforcement, but we also want to ensure that Tasmanians are aware of the risks.

"That is why we're investing $200,000 in an education campaign."

Retrofitting a roll bar to a quad bike generally costs between $300 and $600.

There have been 11 quad bike related deaths in Tasmania between 2011 and 2019.

The education campaign will remind Tasmanians that children under six should not ride on quad bikes, and children under 16 should not ride adult-sized quad bikes.