Why Are Seatbelts Important?
It is intuitive knowledge that wearing a seat belt is important in increasing safety when driving on the road. However, not a lot of people know the extent of how life-saving this device actually is. So before we do a deep dive into the importance of seat belts and why you should wear them, you need to understand the science behind it.
Let us break it down in simple terms.
Basically, seatbelts ensure that you’re moving along the road at the same speed as the car. And so in the event of an accident, you will not be jolted out of the vehicle which could potentially cause additional injury and possibly death. Once the vehicle stops, so do you, securing you in place.
However, if you are not wearing a seatbelt, you will be moving at a speed independent from the vehicle once a crash happens. You will then essentially experience two crashes in one accident: First the car crashes, then you will be ejected from the car and experience a second crash as your body collides with the object in front of you.
Newer car models are usually equipped with state-of-the-art seatbelts that coordinate with the airbags in tightening their straps to ensure optimal safety when an accident happens. This further lowers the risk of injury and death. Some newer models even have sensors that detect when a car crash is about to happen, and they send out signals that instigates the inflation of the seatbelts themselves, which further protects the passenger and driver from life-altering injuries.
So we really cannot stress this enough: seat belts are essential in traffic safety. If you’re not convinced just yet, the statistical facts below should speak for themselves.
Statistics Supporting The Importance of Seat Belts
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, an estimated 50% of the people who die in a car crash did not wear a seat belt. In the same study, the organization has found that seat belt usage has saved approximately 15,000 lives in the year 2017. Their findings are supported by another study done by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, stipulating that indeed, about half of those who died in vehicular collisions failed to wear a seat belt.
For this reason, IIHS urges people to do their due diligence and put them on as they found that lap and shoulder belts reduce the risk of fatal injury by 60% and 45% in bigger cars (SUV, vans, pick up) and smaller cars respectively.
Overview On Seat Belt Statistics:
- Approximately 50% of deceased car accident victims did not wear a seatbelt according to NHTSA and IIHS
- In 2017, 15,000 lives were saved in a crash thanks to seat belts per a study done by NHTSA
- According to the IIHS, lap and shoulder belts reduce the risk of fatal injury by 60% in bigger cars and 45% in smaller cars.
Why You Should Wear A Seat Belt
As supported by the data above, seat belts should be worn at all times because they save lives, reduce the risk of fatal injuries, and absolve you from criminal liability. We will be using the data from both organizations to support our claims.
1. Seat belts save lives
Seat belts are life-saving devices, and this is supported by the data produced by NHTSA and IIHS. As mentioned above, 50% of wrongful death car accident victims failed to wear a seat belt, and their lives could have potentially been saved had they just worn it. As a matter of fact, NHTSA found in 2017 that approximately 15,000 lives were saved in a crash thanks to seat belts. The physics behind it supports this claim as well. The seat belt locks you in place when a crash happens, preventing you from getting ejected from the vehicle and lessening the risk of wrongful deaths.
2. Reduce the risk of injuries
Seat belts reduce the risk of fatal injuries. This is because the seat belt ensures that you’re moving along with it, so when the crash happens you’re not getting ejected. Essentially, you lessen the chances of sustaining a fatal injury like traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, etc.
The IIHS has confirmed this to be true. As a matter of fact, seat belts running across the lap and the shoulders have been found to lessen the chances of fatal injury by 60% in SUVs, vans, and other bigger cars. In the same study, people riding smaller cars such as sedans are 45% less likely to sustain fatal injuries if they wear seat belts.
3. Absolve you from criminal liability
Aside from the fact that wearing seat belts just makes practical sense in terms of safety, wearing them on the road is also your legal obligation. This is all stated in the Vehicle Code § 27315 VC which requires those who are over eight years old to wear a seat belt. On the other hand, children younger than eight years old must wear a child safety seat or a booster seat.
Call Omega Law Group
Seat belts can only help so much. While it does reduce the risk of an injury and potentially save your life, you could still experience various losses and damages as a result of the accident. For one, the medical bills to get you checked up could pile up. Not to mention, there’s still that risk of getting injured. There is also going to be a lot of trauma associated with the accident alone, which could cause emotional distress among other things. Justice needs to be served, and Omega Law Group is just the right firm for the job.
Omega Law Group has numerous accolades under their belt. Their attorneys have been recognized by industry-vetted organizations like SuperLawyers and have gotten the attention of publications like the Los Angeles Times and Los Angeles Business Journal for the work that they do in the field of personal injury.
This is because they have fiercely fought to get their clients the justice they deserve, and they will continue to do so as they are the firm’s first priority. Ultimately, Omega Law ensures that this complex and challenging process remains stress-free for their clients as possible.
The main stressor in acquiring legal help is the attorney fees. Omega Law addresses this by operating on a contingency-fee basis, meaning that clients don’t have to pay upfront for legal services.
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