North West farmers will be safer with new quad bike laws

The decision means "lives will be saved", and comes after hundreds of quad bike accidents and deaths, and subsequent years of campaigning for new rules.

Under the new laws, all new quad bikes must display a warning label alerting riders to the risk of roll over within 12 month; and within 24 months all new quad bikes must be fitted with an operator protection device (OPD) at the point of sale.

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Australian Centre for Agricultural Health and Safety director Moree-based Tony Lower said the change was a "victory for common sense".

The local safety advocate has been looking at the issue since the mid 1990s, and believes the change is "long overdue".

"Since 2001, we've 260 people die in quad related accidents and 70 per cent have been on farms and sadly in among that there's been 15 per cent that are kids," Mr Lower said.

"It's a really positive development and one that will be well supported within the farming fraternity.

"Its important we do have farmers for the future and a part of that is making farming safer but also a productive and safe industry."

Numerous organisations are praising the federal government for the changes, including the National Farmers Federation (NFF) and the National Rural Health Alliance.

"For four decades the NFF has been fighting the good fight on behalf of farmers. There are no more serious issues than protecting the very life our farmers and their families," NFF chief executive officer Tony Mahar said.

"Up to six people per day are rushed to hospital with injuries sustained in quad bike incidents, many of them rollovers. The safety standard will save lives and protect farmers from crippling injury and be key to achieving zero farm-related deaths by 2030."

National Rural Health Alliance chief executive officer Gabrielle O'Kane echoed Mr Mahar's comments.

"Quad bikes are responsible for far too many preventable injuries and deaths in rural Australia, and so we welcome the introduction today of new safety measures which will apply in full from 2021," Dr O'Kane said.

"This is a positive step and will genuinely save lives in rural and remote Australia."