​Quad bikes are the leading cause of accidental death and injury across rural Australia.

Since 2001, there have been more than 220 farming deaths Australia-wide involving quad bikes.

Graham Brown, spokesperson for Alive and Well and farmer from Orange NSW, knows firsthand just how dangerous quad bikes can be for even experienced riders.

“I have been using quad bikes on my farm since the late 1970s,” Brown said.

“In 2015 I was involved in a quad bike accident that could have cost me my life. Luckily, I’m alive today, but the incident continues to impact my life and work on the farm.

“I was towing a trailer with 200 litres of chemicals, boom spraying, when I hit a piece of wood hidden in the long grass. The quad bike rolled over the top of me. I sustained some soft tissue damage, to my hip, shoulder, wrist and ribs.”

Steven Honeywood, the trainer from Tocal College, said that as well as operating quad bikes safely, the course will also cover important WHS issues, active riding techniques and training on how to load and secure quads onto trailers and trucks to ensure participants are appropriately trained in all safety areas of riding a quad bike.

Farmers are responsible for ensuring their workers have adequate training and the skills to safely use quad bikes in the workplace.

“The course allows employees to show a duty of care and due diligence for their employees,” Honeywood said.

“Quad bikes are a major risk on farms and people working on them need to be trained properly and safely on quad bike use.” 

The accredited course will see participants awarded with a unit of competency which demonstrates that they know how to operate a quad bike safely.

The course was an approved event and enables participants to get funding from SafeWork NSW for safer operation of quad bikes.

Rider-training courses are an important safety measure in reducing this farm hazard.