Seat Belt Restraints

National Safety Council

 

Seat belts save lives. While seat belt and adjustable head restraints have been increasing and averages 88 percent nationally, there are still groups less likely to wear seat belts: teens, commercial drivers, males in rural areas, pick-up truck drivers, and people driving at night, and people who have been drinking. Resources here include data, effective prevention, and links to national and state organizations working on this issue.

Seat Belts: Your Single Most Effective Safety Step
Seat belts are the single most effective traffic safety device for preventing whiplash, pain, death and injury, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Wearing a seat belt can reduce the risk of car accidents injuries by 50 percent.  They save lives:

• Seat belts saved more than 75,000 lives from 2004 to 2008.
• Forty-two percent of passenger vehicle occupants killed in 2007 were unbelted. A 2009 NHTSA study estimates more than 1,600 lives could be saved and 22,000 injuries prevented if seat belt use was 90 percent in every state.

The good news is, in 2009, seat belt use averaged 88 percent nationally, compared with 69 percent in 1998.NHTSA attributes this increase to the "Click It or Ticket" campaign, originally created by the National Safety Council as part of its Airbags & Seat Belt Safety Campaign. Studies have also found a decrease in the severity of whiplash. Our Myths about Car Accident Injuries provides you more information.

Nationwide, seat belt use is higher than ever. Yet seat belt use remains lowest among young drivers. NHTSA also reports that, in 2007:

• Seat belt use was lower among blacks than any other race.
• Seat belt use was higher among females than males.
• Seat belt use was lower among drivers who drove alone than drivers with passengers.

State Seat Belt Laws

Forty-nine states and the District of Columbia have mandatory seat belt laws (the exception is New Hampshire). The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has a state-by-state map of seat belt laws.

Primary and Secondary Enforcement

Seat belt use is 13 percent higher in states with primary enforcement (88 percent) than in states with secondary enforcement (75 percent).

• 31 states plus the District of Columbia have primary enforcement of seat belt laws, meaning police can stop vehicles and write citations for failure to buckle up.
• 18 states have secondary enforcement, meaning police can issue a seat belt citation only after a vehicle is stopped for another reason.

Journal of Safety Research Special Issue

Proceedings from a Symposium on High Visibility Enforcement - Building Sustained Safety Belt Use

Volume 35, Issue 2, Pages 131-244 (2004)

Table of Contents: 
·  The role of enforcement programs in increasing seat belt use
·  Documenting the sustainability of a mature Click It or Ticket program.
·  Effectiveness of primary enforcement safety belt laws and enhanced enforcement of safety belt laws: A summary of the Guide to Community Preventive Services systematic reviews
·  Taking the Click It or Ticket model nationwide
·  The effect of earned and paid media strategies in high visibility enforcement campaigns
·  Ninety five percent: An evaluation of law, policy, and programs to promote seat belt use in Washington state
·  Occupant restraint use in Canada
·  A research agenda for increasing safety belt use in the United States

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