Failure to wear a bicycle helmet and the issue of a cyclist´s contributory negligence in a traffic accident from the perspective of German, Czech and Slovak case law

Abstract

The paper deals with the case of a cyclist´s failure to wear a protective helmet while cycling and the issue that arises when the cyclist suffers a head injury in a traffic accident caused by the operation of a motor vehicle and/or driving a motor vehicle – is the cyclist also at fault for such an injury? The paper highlights how this case was decided by the German courts. It deals with Slovak legal regulation de lege lata and the approaches of Slovak and Czech courts in this area. It provides a solution to the case according to Slovak legal regulation and considerations de lege ferenda.