Oxford can proudly boast the second highest number of commuters on bikes in the country, but in competition with everyone else trying to use the roads, that can be a blessing and a curse. Now a new inflatable bike helmet from Sweden is promising to make cycling safer. Reporter Pete Hughes tried it out, and found using it as easy as falling off a bike...

You are cycling along the road, hit a pothole and start to fall. Then you hear a bang, but you haven’t crashed into anything.

It is actually the sound of your Hövding bike helmet inflating around your head.

The cyclists’ “airbag” is worn as a collar around the neck and a gyroscope sensor detects when you are falling and balloons the device around your head in a tenth of a second.

On Friday the UK distributors of the Swedish-made helmet brought it to Oxford, the second-highest city for bike-riding commuters in the UK after Cambridge.

After a demonstration in falling off a bike from expert cyclist and jujitsu teacher Kathryn Sentance, I couldn’t wait gave it a go.

The inflatable helmet has three times the shock absorbency of a normal helmet, the manufacturers say.

Perhaps most importantly, they say, it secures the whole head and neck, stopping potentially dangerous movements.

Ms Sentance explained that the device offers most protection in the urban environment.

She said: “I have lots of experience falling off bikes and I know how it feels – what bits of you hurt when you fall in different ways.

“In the urban environment, if you fall and hit the pavement, most likely there is going to be something else involved, whether it is a car or a bus or a lamppost.

“This will protect your head and face but also your neck.”

The biggest downside is the cost: Your first Hövding will set you back £249 and it only works once.

After that, the company is offering a replacement for £99 a time.

Jason Hewett, manager of Beeline Bicycles in Cowley Road, got a quick look at the demonstration on Friday, and said he was “very interested”.

He said: “I like it, it’s a very clever idea, but my problem is the cost: that’s quite a scary price for the average consumer.”

He pointed out that the average helmet in his shop cost between £30 and £50.

Mr Hewett added: “It is probably going to protect the face better.”

Josh Van Raalte – a UK representative for Hovding, said Oxford cyclists would definitely benefit from the Hövding, and he would know – he lived in the city for 15 years before moving to Henley recently.

He said: “I got knocked off my bike twice when I lived here.

“The students all come to Oxford, get a bike and start cycling, but they don’t know the codes, the etiquette or even the fact that they need a helmet – that is what causes problems.”