I've wondered about this phenomenon in general, that safety equipment could cause people to take more risks because it makes them feel safer. Many years ago on

I've wondered about this phenomenon in general, that safety equipment could cause people to take more risks because it makes them feel safer. Many years ago on Monday night football John Madden remarked that some of the hits during games seemed to occur because players felt safe using their body as a missile. The protective gear allowed them to do that, while the old leather helmets of his era did not. I know I've done incredibly risky things with equipment like wood chippers because I felt like their designs would let me stop them fast enough. I've hung off the back of boats at high speed because I had a GPS tracking radio collar on and felt confident if I fell off they'd find me. These things seemed to make sense at the time. I've thought for a while that the best safety gear is training. Rail yards to this day show some unbelievably gory videos to inculcate people to the inherent risks present there. High vis gear, helmets, etc all are important but actually knowing the risks and owning them personally is essential. Little of that seems applicable to this case though. I think wzdd's thinking is most accurate, unhelmeted passengers probably don't feel great looking ahead and seeing their driver's helmeted head.