CHARLOTTE, N.C. — As an ATV instructor for Boy Scout Troop 39 of Matthews, Joseph Culpepper’s job is to keep his students safe. Before anyone can so much as touch a four-wheeler, they grab helmets, goggles, gloves, and sit down for a book lesson.

Data from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission shows nearly 4,000 people have died in the U.S. from accidents associated with ATVs, or four-wheelers as they are commonly known, since 2004.

Their most recent data shows at least 504 of those deaths happened in North Carolina. 

There were at least two reported ATV-related deaths in the Charlotte region at the end of 2021. While the causes weren’t clear, the Iredell County Sheriff’s Office reported one of the victims was an 11-year-old.

Culpepper says in addition to safety gear, riders should know their ATVs.

“Every ATV has this on there,” he said, pointing to warning labels on his vehicle.

Age limits are printed on the vehicles. Culpepper says when they’re ignored, it can be deadly.

“A lot of times it’s people in a machine that’s too large for them. And also, not wearing helmets,” he said.

Culpepper says one death is one too many.

“If we can prevent one, we’re doing something [right],” he said.

The ATV Safety Institute reports the ATV-operator injury rate has declined since 1984.

That’s just a couple years after the CPSC started collecting data on ATV-related deaths. The institute says the decline in injuries is due in part to their safety awareness and public education programs, like the one Culpepper leads.