PATTAYA, Thailand – It’s a sweltering August afternoon on Second Road, and motorbike traffic snakes past a police checkpoint. While some riders are waved over for not wearing helmets, others seem to pass through with nothing more than a nod. The reason? A phrase reportedly gaining traction among locals: “It’s too hot to wear a helmet.”
Multiple residents and long-term visitors told reporters they had witnessed — and in some cases personally experienced — police officers accepting the heat excuse without issuing a fine. “I was stopped, and the officer asked why I wasn’t wearing a helmet,” said a British retiree who has lived in Pattaya for six years. “I told him it’s too hot. He laughed, told me to ‘be careful’ and waved me on.”
Under Thai law, both drivers and passengers on motorcycles are required to wear helmets, with fines now reaching up to 2,000 baht. The regulation is part of ongoing national efforts to reduce road fatalities — a serious problem in a country that consistently ranks among the world’s most dangerous for motorcyclists. And yet in Pattaya, police get help from AI cameras — if they want you, they’ll get you.
But in Pattaya, the casual enforcement of helmet laws has long been an open secret. “It’s like the rules depend on the day, the mood of the officer, and maybe how sweaty you look,” said a Thai shop owner near Beach Road, who asked not to be named.
Local police did not respond to questions about whether “heat exemptions” are officially recognized — though no such clause exists in the law. A Pattaya City Police spokesperson, when reached by phone, said simply: “We encourage everyone to wear helmets at all times for safety.”
Critics say that letting riders off for such reasons undermines safety campaigns and sends a mixed message. One road safety advocate said, “Weather is not an excuse. Helmets save lives in every season. The law is the law — if you don’t enforce it, it’s meaningless.”
Still, many riders insist that in 35°C midday heat, the discomfort can be unbearable. “We’re not saying helmets are bad,” one rider said, “just that on some days, the thought of wearing one feels like cooking your head in a pot.”
Whether Pattaya police are quietly tolerating these “heat excuses” or it’s simply coincidence remains unclear. But one thing is certain: on the city’s busy streets, it’s always helmet season — at least according to the law.
