Ohio State Highway Patrol Safety Belts Save Lives

Injury and fatality prevention  Far too many fatal and serious injury crashes are occurring on Ohio roadways. Wearing a safety belt can prevent serious or fatal injuries.  Choosing to wear a safety belt is a personal decision, but Ohio’s safety belt compliance rate affects us all. Those affected may be passengers in the car with you, or other drivers on the road.  Wearing a safety belt is still the single most effective thing anyone can do to save lives and reduce injuries on Ohio's roadways.

Statistics don’t lie  On average, more than half of all Ohioans who die on our roadways in a motor vehicle crash are not wearing their safety belt. Most of these crashes happen within a short distance of the driver’s destination. Approximately 75 percent of fatal crashes occur within 25 miles of home.  There is simply no disputing that wearing a safety belt can save your life and reduce injury. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), wearing your safety belt doubles your chances of surviving a crash without serious injury and children who are in proper car safety seats survive 90 percent of crashes. It is estimated that safety belts save over 14,900 lives annually.

What is Ohio’s safety belt law?  No person shall operate an automobile on any street or highway unless that person is wearing all of the available elements of a properly adjusted occupant restraining device or occupy, as a passenger, a seating position on the front seat of an automobile being operated on any street or highway unless that person is wearing all of the available elements of a properly adjusted occupant restraining device.

Are there any exceptions?  The only exceptions are employees of the United States postal service or of a newspaper home delivery service, during any period in which the person is engaged in the operation of an automobile to deliver mail or newspapers to addressees, or a person who has an affidavit signed by a physician licensed to practice in this state under Chapter 4731 of the Revised Code or a chiropractor licensed to practice in this state under Chapter 4734 of the Revised Code that states that the person has a physical impairment that makes use of an occupant restraining device impossible or impractical.

What is Ohio’s child restrain law?  When any child who is in either or both of the following categories is being transported in a motor vehicle, other than a taxicab or public safety vehicle as defined in section of the Revised Code, that is registered in this state and is required by the United States department of transportation to be equipped with seat belts at the time of manufacture or assembly, the operator of the motor vehicle shall have the child properly secured in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions in a child restraint system that meets federal motor vehicle safety standards: A child who is less than four years of age; A child who weighs less than forty pounds.

Why enforce safety belt violations?  Traffic crashes claim thousands of lives and cost BILLIONS of dollars each year in the United States.  Safety belts are proven to reduce the severity of the vast majority of injuries.  State troopers have a zero tolerance policy for safety belt offenses when motorists are stopped for violations and are not wearing a required safety belt or do not have children properly restrained in child safety seats.

Isn’t safety belt use a personal decision which affects only me?  The decision to wear a safety belt affects many people.  The consequences of not wearing a safety belt can greatly affect your family and loved ones. How would it affect YOU if a loved one was killed, disabled, or seriously injured as the result of not buckling up?  It is your responsibility to maintain control of your vehicle. It is not uncommon for a car to continue moving after a crash, and safety belts are your best chance of remaining able to safely steer and/or stop your car before it strikes another person or vehicle.

Cost of not wearing a safety belt  The cost of not wearing a safety belt is borne by all who pay insurance premiums.  A crash in which a safety belted driver might receive only bumps and bruises might result a costly hospital stay for the unbelted driver. That cost is spread across the insurance premiums of ALL drivers.  The National Highway Traffic Safety Agency estimates Ohioans would save over $1 billion a year if another 10 percent of drivers would wear safety belts.

Won’t a safety belt trap me if my car is on fire or goes into water?  These are rare situations.  However, should this occur, your best chance of survival is remaining conscious so you can escape.  If you sustain heavy injuries or are rendered unconscious, your chances of escape will depend upon whether or not someone is there (and able) to save you.  Wearing your safety belt greatly reduces your chance of sustaining heaving injuries, and greatly increases your chances of escaping and surviving.

Value of safety marketing  Programs like What’s Holding you Back?/ Click it or Ticket and Buckle Up for a Successful Season help educate motorists on the importance of the importance of wearing a safety belt.  In 2006, those programs contributed to Ohio’s traffic crash fatality rate reaching a 70-year low, and safety belt usage hitting an all-time high of 82 percent.

Final thoughts  Although we think it will never happen to us, traffic crashes are a leading killer of both adults and children. We cannot always prevent our involvement in a crash, but what happens to us during a crash is often within our control, if we buckle our safety belts.  Please wear a seat belt and insist that those who travel with you buckle up. It is the easiest thing you can do to protect yourself, your friends and your family.

Ohio State Highway Patrol Safety Belts Save Lives Questions? Comments? Personal Experiences?