Hi Andy:

I'm not certain I agree with that. While it is true that in most fully developed countries, all helmets offered for sale must pass whatever testing standard that country mandates, there can be some very significant differences between helmets that both pass the standards test. The differences don't always correlate with pricing, but generally speaking, I think "you get what you pay for".

Having said that, I do agree wholeheartedly with you that it is a complete waste of money to pay any premium for a helmet that has fancy graphics on it.

Better quality helmets will offer features such as more comfortable padding around the cheeks and strap, and often can be fitted with different sizes of cheekpads and/or helmet liners in order to optimize fit.

If a rider will spend a lot of time in environments where rain, fog, or cold weather is common, a Pinlock face shield (or similar: a double-element face shield that minimizes fogging) is worth the extra cost.

Full-face helmets with a flip-up front chin bar, such as the Schuberth that I have, can be of great value to riders who wear glasses (like me) or who find conventional full-face helmets to be a bit claustrophobic.

If you apply your argument (cited above) to cars, it would read "Both the cheapest Korean subcompact econobox and the most expensive Mercedes S class have to pass the same vehicle safety standards - so, there is no point in buying anything other than the cheapest Korean subcompact econobox when you next need to buy a car." I think you would agree with me that that statement is a bit over the top.

Respectfully, Michael