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We are often asked by customers what helmet homologation do I need and when will it expire? We hope this short explanation will help you understand the different standards and the reasons for change.
A full list of the latest FIA recognised standards with expiry dates can be found here. The required standard depends on the type of event: a national event is normally sanctioned by a National Sporting Authority and an international race falls under the FIA regulations. Most National Sporting Authorities included MSA (UK authority) simply adopt the FIA helmet regulations. However in Ireland MSI offer a 5 year extension on the FIA helmet expiry dates. Helmet safety standards involve stringent tests for multiple impacts of energy absorption, penetration of sharp objects, fire resistance and compatibility with various FHR systems (Frontal Head Restraint - HANS® / Hybrid®).
In the past BSI (British Standard Institute) was a standard recognised by the FIA, most entry level helmets conformed to this standard as it was a less stringent test to pass compared to Snell. The standard was BS6658-85, the problem was that this standard was introduced in 1985 and was never updated so as time passed the safety protection was a serious concern, the FIA expired this standard at the end of 2013. In theory a competitor could have competed internationally with a helmet up to 29 years old. In my opinion MSI extensions for national events are a good idea from a cost point of view but in this case a BSI helmets can be used in Ireland till the end of 2018! I certainly wouldn't race with one, what protection can a helmet that is potentially 33 years old, designed to a standard in 1985 give your head?
In recent years, the Snell SA certification has been the most popular recognised standard for helmets used in most forms of motorsport worldwide. The Snell SA standard was first published in 1970, and has been regularly updated every 5 years, making the helmets continuously safer. The latest version, Snell SA2015, was released in October 2015. In 2002, in parallel with the introduction of the first FHR systems, the FIA introduced their first helmet related standard known as FIA 8858-2002. Snell SA approved helmets to be used with an FHR system had to be submitted to additional tests to ensure their compatibility, mainly to do with the position and strength of the area for FHR (HANS®) posts. That meant that, any driver using an FHR system had to wear a helmet bearing a Snell SA label and an FIA 8858 label. Some helmets supplied without this label could be upgraded to FIA 8858 for FHR posts but only by the manufacturer or an approved centre. In contrast in the USA competitors are still free to take a drill to the helmet and make their own holes for FHR posts. In my opinion the FIA labelling situation was unfair as it was very expensive for a competitor to upgrade a helmet however I don’t agree with the drilling process allowed in the US. I always felt shells should be sold ready for posts to be fitted and was happy to see FIA went this direction in 2010 and upgraded the standard to 8858-2010. This standard allowed helmet manufacturers to insert M6 terminals into the shells resulting in them already being homologated for FHR posts allowing competitors to fit FHR posts of their choice when necessary.
In 2004, the FIA introduced a new standard known as FIA 8860 for ‘Advanced Helmets’. This idea was first discussed in an FIA safety in 1995, the goals set by FIA in terms of impact energy absorption were so high that even the best helmet engineers thought that it could never be achieved unless the helmets were twice as big and made much heavier! However 9 years later, after intense research and development efforts led by FIA together with some helmets manufacturers (including Arai, Bell & Stilo), and thanks to the developments of composite materials, the standard was a reality and FIA 8860-2004 helmets were mandatory in Formula One from 2004. Since then his standard has been gradually made mandatory in other high FIA international categories. All 8860 helmet shells are of a high tensile carbon construction. FIA 8860-2010 is the latest version of this standard and is currently the safest motorsport helmet standard in the world. To date all FIA 8860 certified helmets must also be Snell SA approved, leading to a duel homologation.
In 2013, discussions regarding the new 2015 standards took place between the FIA, the Snell Foundation and the main helmets manufacturers. The FIA had some specific fairly tough criteria, especially for large sized helmets planned. However the FIA and Snell couldn’t come to an agreement, leading FIA to introduce their own new standard known as FIA 8859 and not recognising Snell SA2015 to the same extent as they did for previous Snell standards. FIA 8859-2015 is a standard on its own; in some areas, it is similar to Snell SA2015, and in other areas (impact management on large sizes and FHR compatibility), it is slightly more demanding than Snell SA2015.
Most manufacturers have developed their latest range of helmets to pass both the FIA 8859-2015 and Snell SA2015 tests which means the helmets are supplied with both homologations. For FIA events SA2015 will expire at the end of 2023 but FIA 8859-2015 has no expiry date yet. Most likely FIA will not recognise the next Snell standard due in 2020, it is clear that FIA will focus on their own helmet standard for the future.
From 2016 onwards, the FIA will also require visors to pass a test. Original visors are submitted to fire resistance and penetration tests. The 
reason is due to concerns about non-original accessories that might not be safe. In particular colour recognition is an important criteria and as a result you may see some colour visors modified or no longer available. The approved visors have a small FIA label on the left hand side, these newly homologated visors are only necessary for helmets with a manufactured date from 2016.
In the US, many races are sanctioned at national level, and the Snell standards, including the latest SA2015, are vastly accepted and recognised. Helmets that are only FIA homologated may not be accepted at US national level.
I hope this was a helpful insight into helmet standards. If you have any doubts as to what standard you require please feel free to give me a call.
Eoin Murray
In recent years, the Snell SA certification has been the most popular recognised standard for helmets used in most forms of motorsport worldwide. The Snell SA standard was first published in 1970, and has been regularly updated every 5 years, making the helmets continuously safer. The latest version, Snell SA2015, was released in October 2015. In 2002, in parallel with the introduction of the first FHR systems, the FIA introduced their first helmet related standard known as FIA 8858-2002. Snell SA approved helmets to be used with an FHR system had to be submitted to additional tests to ensure their compatibility, mainly to do with the position and strength of the area for FHR (HANS®) posts. That meant that, any driver using an FHR system had to wear a helmet bearing a Snell SA label and an FIA 8858 label. Some helmets supplied without this label could be upgraded to FIA 8858 for FHR posts but only by the manufacturer or an approved centre. In contrast in the USA competitors are still free to take a drill to the helmet and make their own holes for FHR posts. In my opinion the FIA labelling situation was unfair as it was very expensive for a competitor to upgrade a helmet however I don’t agree with the drilling process allowed in the US. I always felt shells should be sold ready for posts to be fitted and was happy to see FIA went this direction in 2010 and upgraded the standard to 8858-2010. This standard allowed helmet manufacturers to insert M6 terminals into the shells resulting in them already being homologated for FHR posts allowing competitors to fit FHR posts of their choice when necessary.
In 2004, the FIA introduced a new standard known as FIA 8860 for ‘Advanced Helmets’. This idea was first discussed in an FIA safety in 1995, the goals set by FIA in terms of impact energy absorption were so high that even the best helmet engineers thought that it could never be achieved unless the helmets were twice as big and made much heavier! However 9 years later, after intense research and development efforts led by FIA together with some helmets manufacturers (including Arai, Bell & Stilo), and thanks to the developments of composite materials, the standard was a reality and FIA 8860-2004 helmets were mandatory in Formula One from 2004. Since then his standard has been gradually made mandatory in other high FIA international categories. All 8860 helmet shells are of a high tensile carbon construction. FIA 8860-2010 is the latest version of this standard and is currently the safest motorsport helmet standard in the world. To date all FIA 8860 certified helmets must also be Snell SA approved, leading to a duel homologation.
In 2013, discussions regarding the new 2015 standards took place between the FIA, the Snell Foundation and the main helmets manufacturers. The FIA had some specific fairly tough criteria, especially for large sized helmets planned. However the FIA and Snell couldn’t come to an agreement, leading FIA to introduce their own new standard known as FIA 8859 and not recognising Snell SA2015 to the same extent as they did for previous Snell standards. FIA 8859-2015 is a standard on its own; in some areas, it is similar to Snell SA2015, and in other areas (impact management on large sizes and FHR compatibility), it is slightly more demanding than Snell SA2015.
Most manufacturers have developed their latest range of helmets to pass both the FIA 8859-2015 and Snell SA2015 tests which means the helmets are supplied with both homologations. For FIA events SA2015 will expire at the end of 2023 but FIA 8859-2015 has no expiry date yet. Most likely FIA will not recognise the next Snell standard due in 2020, it is clear that FIA will focus on their own helmet standard for the future.
From 2016 onwards, the FIA will also require visors to pass a test. Original visors are submitted to fire resistance and penetration tests. The reason is due to concerns about non-original accessories that might not be safe. In particular colour recognition is an important criteria and as a result you may see some colour visors modified or no longer available. The approved visors have a small FIA label on the left hand side, these newly homologated visors are only necessary for helmets with a manufactured date from 2016.
In the US, many races are sanctioned at national level, and the Snell standards, including the latest SA2015, are vastly accepted and recognised. Helmets that are only FIA homologated may not be accepted at US national level.
I hope this was a helpful insight into helmet standards. If you have any doubts as to what standard you require please feel free to give me a call.
Eoin Murray