In-car Safety
It is estimated that seat belts have saved around 60,000 lives since they were made mandatory in 1983, but still around 350 people die every year because they failed to belt up.
By law, everyone must wear a seat belt in cars and goods vehicles where one is fitted. It is the driver who is liable to prosecution if a child under 14 years does not wear a seat belt or use an appropriate child restraint.
Children up to 135cms tall must use the appropriate child restraint for their weight (not age) when travelling in the front or back seat of any car, van or goods vehicle. A child can use an adult belt when they reach 135cm or their 12th birthday, whichever comes first.
Unrestrained rear seat passengers pose a threat to those in the front as, in the event of a crash, they can be hurled into the seats in front with an impact equivalent to three and a half tons - that of a small elephant.
If you are not wearing a belt and have a crash your body experiences three collisions capable of seriously damaging vital organs. The first is as your car crashes and stops, the second as your body carries on and hits the inside of the car and finally your body stops but your internal organs keep moving, hitting the inside of your body and potentially rupturing under the force of the impact.
The Staffordshire Safer Roads Partnership is urging everyone to use their belt, every journey and to ensure that any children travelling in the car are restrained in an appropriate car seat.
Click here for further information regarding in-car safety:
Department for Transport 'Seat Belt and Child Restraint' leaflet
