In recent years, safety air vests have become a popular piece of safety equipment for equestrians across a range of disciplines. ASTM-certified body protectors became mandatory in eventing for the cross country phase starting in 2006, but both foam body protectors and air vests are increasingly being seen in other competition rings, too.
Equestrian helmets are tested by one of several international standards organizations which have protocols for evaluating the performance of helmets under different impact conditions. By contrast, the landscape for testing standards of equestrian air vests is extremely limited, and a handful of manufacturers test to motorcycle air vest standards. This means that the potential effectiveness (or lack thereof) of air vests for equestrian athletes is largely unknown.
Dr. Mark Hart, chair of the FEI Medical Committee and the US Equestrian Human and Equine Safety & Welfare Committee, recognized this as a problem that had been raised by many riders and concerned medical professionals.
“We have very little current scientific data on the actual effectiveness of air vests,” said Hart. “And manufacturers are sometimes making marketing claims about improved rider safety that are scientifically unsubstantiated.”
The question isn’t as simple as whether the vests are helpful or not. There’s not much research about what circumstances could change the ability of a vest to respond to an impact – angle of fall, vest type, impact location, force, and horse/rider factors could change the injury types an air vest is most effective at preventing.
Hart, who also chairs the recently-formed FEI Equestrian Safety Vest Working Group, determined that the best starting point to learn more would be to understand the current landscape of body protectors (foam-based vests) and air vest usage in horse sports. Together with a multi-disciplinary team, Hart helped create a survey which was sent to active US Equestrian members in December 2024 to understand current safety vest use in the United States. The survey got 6,097 responses and was completed by adult riders and drivers, adults responding on behalf of minors who ride or drive, and trainers/coaches. The majority of respondents were adult riders, the vast majority of whom were female, and most identified themselves as advanced amateur riders or drivers (those who jump or compete).
Most body protectors and air vests owned by adult riders are owned by participants in hunter/equitation, show jumping, eventing, and dressage. Across disciplines, about 46% of adults who own body protectors report wearing them at shows or competitions and situationally when training, while 15% report wearing them for every ride or drive. By contrast, approximately 40% of the adult air vest owners report wearing their air vests during every ride or drive, while 30% percent use them at shows or competitions and situationally while training.
Use of this equipment isn’t limited to beginners, either. Of the adults who own body protectors and are considered intermediate athletes (those walking, trotting, cantering, or driving independently), approximately 40% report wearing their body protector every time they ride or drive; additionally, 14% of advanced athletes (those jumping or competing) who owned body protectors reported wearing them for every ride or drive. Among adult air vest owners, approximately 60% of intermediate riders/drivers and 41% of advanced riders/drivers say they wear their air vest for every ride or drive.
Survey takers were also asked to report their top two beliefs about the types of injuries they believe that body protectors or air vests could prevent. About 43% of adult body protector owners and 37% of adult air vest owners believe that their equipment can protect them against rib fractures/chest trauma, while 23% of body protector owners and approximately 36% of air vest owners believe that their equipment may prevent spine/spinal cord injuries. There is currently no clear evidence to suggest that vests substantially reduce the risk of severe chest or spinal injury.
Anecdotally, some survey-takers expressed concerns about whether the fit of safety vests could restrict their range of motion when deployed, reducing their ability to tuck and roll during a fall, and several said they were worried about the noise of an air vest deployment (especially an accidental one) spooking a horse.
US Equestrian began requiring reports of all horse and rider falls in competition for all breeds and disciplines starting Dec. 1, 2023. That means that 2025 is the second full year of data on how frequently falls are taking place at shows, which may help to better characterize the types of injuries seen and to evaluate the performance of newer safety equipment when available.
Initially, the USEF and the U.S. Hunter Jumper Association had hoped that by working together, they could engage with an academic partner to test air vests from different manufacturers, similar to Virginia Tech’s helmet rating system. It quickly became apparent that since there are no requirements to meet air vest testing, research needs to include the creation and validation of new testing protocols before evaluating product design and brands – which means that this important issue will not be quick nor cheap to address.
“As we know, serious fall injuries are thankfully few and far between, but when they do happen, they can be catastrophic,” said Hart. “We feel it’s our duty as an organization to take a leadership role to evaluate and improve riders’ personal protective equipment. A lot of our USEF members have been requesting that this research be done to enhance rider safety.”
Given the size and the scope of this project, the USEF and USHJA teams soon realized that this would require a larger, international effort to be successful. Hence, the FEI Equestrian Safety Vest Working Group (ESVWG) was formed in June 2025. This group is led by a diverse expert International Scientific Panel overseen by the FEI Medical Committee with direct input of a National Federation Advisory Panel. This process includes athlete and safety vest manufacturer focus groups to ensure stakeholder input.
The proposed research project ahead will include a review of traditional foam-based body protectors in addition to air vests. The project will also assess the equipment's effectiveness under typical use and recommend new testing standards and designs that align with real-life fall scenarios to better reduce serious rider injuries. Stay tuned for updates on the project’s progress.
US Equestrian would like to acknowledge the following additional contributors to the vest survey design and analysis: Dr. Ian Roy of UMass Chan Medical School, Dr. Cindy Lin, Clinical Professor of Sports & Spine Medicine at University of Washington Medical Center, and Dr. Stephanie Bonin, biomechanical engineer.