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BUCKLING
UP
In 2006, 55% of passenger vehicle occupants killed in traffic
crashes were not wearing seat belts. Seat belt use, reinforced
by effective safety belt laws, is a proven life saver.
All
states except one have seat belt use laws, but only 26 states
(AK, AL, CA, CT, DE, GA, HI, IL, IN, IA, KY, LA, MA, MD, MI, MS,
NJ, NM, NY, NC, OK, OR, SC, TN, TX, WA) and the District of Columbia
have primary enforcement of their belt laws. In states with primary
enforcement, law officers may ticket a non-belt user when they
see a violation of the seat belt law. With secondary enforcement
laws, officers may issue a citation only after stopping the vehicle
for another traffic infraction.
Seat
belt use is significantly higher in states with primary enforcement
laws compared to those with secondary enforcement laws. Primary
enforcement is important not only for raising adult safety belt
use, but also for increasing the number of children who are protected
by occupant restraints. Research also shows that when adults buckle
up, 87% of children get buckled up too.
SEAT
BELT FACTS
Lap-shoulder
belts reduce the risk of fatal injury to front-seat occupants
by 45% and the risk of moderate-to-critical injuries by 50%, depending
on the type of vehicle and seating position involved. For light
truck occupants, safety belts reduce the risk of fatal injury
by 60% and moderate-to-critical injury by 65%.(National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration, or NHTSA, 2005)
Seat
belts are credited with preventing an estimated 15,434 fatalities
in 2004. If all passenger vehicle occupants over age 4 wore safety
belts, 21,273 lives could have been saved in 2004. (NHTSA, 2005)
If
all passengers were to wear their seat belts, an additional 5,839
fatalities could have been prevented in 2004. (NHTSA, 2005)
Six
out of ten children who died in passenger vehicle crashes were
unbelted. (NHTSA, 2005)
The
needless deaths and injuries that result from non-use of seat
belts cost society an estimated $26 billion annually in medical
care, lost productivity and other injury related costs. (NHTSA,
2002)
The
needless deaths and injuries that result from non-use of seat
belts cost society an estimated $26 billion annually in medical
care, lost productivity and other injury related costs. (NHTSA,
2002)
Average
inpatient costs for traffic crash victims who did not use seat
belts were 50% higher than for victims who were belted. (NSC,
2001)
PRIMARY ENFORCEMENT LAW FACTS
By
just enacting a primary enforcement seat belt law, usage rates
rise 10-15 percentage points. (NHTSA, 2003)
Michigan
saw a 14 percent increase in their seat belt use rate from 70
percent to 84 percent after they passed a primary enforcement
law in 2000. (NHTSA, 2003)
When California passed a primary enforcement law in 1993, usage
rates rose from 70% to 82%. Similar impacts occurred in Louisiana,
where usage rose 18 points, Georgia, where usage rose 17 points,
in Maryland, where usage rose 13 points and in the District of
Columbia, where usage rose 24 points when a primary enforcement
law was combined with penalty points. (NHTSA, 2002)
In New York, prior to its primary enforcement law of 1984, the
seat belt usage rate was 11%. By Fall of 1999, 76% of motorists
buckled up. (NHTSA, 2001)
Adult
seat belt use is the best predictor of child occupant restraint
use. A driver who is buckled up is three times more likely to
restrain a child passenger than one who is not buckled. (NSC,
2002)
When
Louisiana adopted its primary enforcement law, child restraint
use jumped from 45 to 82% even though the state's child passenger
safety law did not change. (NHTSA, 2002)
African
American men are less likely to buckle up than their white and
Hispanic counterparts, putting them at greater risk of dying in
a crash. (U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) However,
research shows that for African American men age 18-29, belt use
is significantly higher in primary enforcement states than in
secondary law states, 58% v. 46%. (American Journal of Public
Health, Vol. 88, No. 2, Feb. 1998)
The
Congressional Black Caucus has stated that increasing seat belt
use among African Americans is an "urgent national health
priority." The National Black Caucus of State Legislators
and the National Conference of Black Mayors have also expressed
support for strong laws that increase seat belt use and include
safeguards for uniform enforcement. (NHTSA, 2003)
Fines
for not wearing a seat belt in the United States currently range
from $5 in Idaho to $75 in Oregon. The most common fine (27 states)
is $20-25. A 1995 NHTSA study of the effect of various provisions
of seat belt use laws found that for each $1 in fine level, states
tend to gain about 0.08% higher belt use. (NHTSA, 2003)
In
2004, 68 percent of the pickup truck drivers killed in traffic
crashes were not wearing restraints. (NHTSA, 2005)
February
2008
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