healthspin
by Katie Sheets
Using Caution on Golf Carts Is Par for the Course
18
Katie Sheets
Director of Certified Programs
North Oaks Medical Center
As you’re navigating the
fairways in your golf cart,
you’re probably considering
your next shot, not the fact
that you’re driving a vehicle
that could prove deadly.
It’s easy to think of a golf
cart as a grown-up toy. But,
golf carts – considered allterrain vehicles – should
be driven as cautiously as
motorcycles or even cars.
Each year, about 13,000
emergency room visits
nationwide result from golf
cart crashes, according to
the Consumer Product
Safety Commission. Of
these, about 40 percent
involve children, and 50
percent involve someone
falling from a moving cart.
Another 10 percent involve
a rollover.
Because of the increased
popularity in golf carts –
from the country clubs to
the neighborhoods – injuries
have also increased. One
research group reports that
annual injury rates for golf
carts soared 130 percent
over 16 years ending in
2006.
And, because of the
dangers they pose, there are
laws about how they should
be handled, just like with
cars.
In the 2015 Louisiana
Legislative Session, Rep.
Eddie Lambert of Gonzales
introduced a bill, which
became law on Aug. 1, 2015.
The new law:
• Prohibits the use
of golf carts on most
public roads. Exceptions
include college campuses
and state highways that
intersect golf courses
• Requires registration
of a golf cart with the
Office of Motor Vehicles
as an off-road vehicle
and requires display of a
decal issued by the OMV
• Restricts operation of a
golf cart to a person with
a valid driver’s license
• Requires the owner
of a golf course to have
liability insurance.
The laws are intended
to help prevent crashes like
the one involving a 16-yearold golf bag room attendant
who was fatally injured
while driving a golf cart.
On Sept. 16, 2000, the
Massachusetts boy hit a
deck that sheared off the
steering wheel, with the
cart continuing forward and
crushing his chest, according
to the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention
(CDC).
Just a few months ago,
a 6-year-old Texas girl was
killed when the golf cart
in which she was riding
overturned. The driver, an
8-year-old boy, was turning
when the golf cart toppled
over and trapped the girl
under the cart.
While traversing the
course, remember that the
most dangerous area of the
cart path is on the slopes.
One crash claimed the
life of an Indiana woman
who was changing seats
with her companion while
headed down a steep hill.