When you’re driving friends or family in your car, and you notice that they’re not using a seatbelt, politely ask them to please “buckle up.” If you do so, and they comply, you might just save a life. If you do so, and they don’t comply, at least you know that you did your best to help prevent a catastrophic injury or death in your vehicle.
If you’re having trouble convincing your passengers why it’s so important to use a safety belt, the following information could help you convince them:
Half of those killed in car crashes weren’t wearing a seatbelt
One startling statistic from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration shows that 48 percent of fatal car crash victims didn’t have a seatbelt on. It’s estimated that seatbelts saved 14,668 lives in 2016 and another 2,456 people would not have died if they had worn a seatbelt.
Airbags are not enough to keep you safe
Airbags are designed to work in conjunction with seatbelts. If you’re not wearing a seatbelt, you could bump up against the airbag in a way that causes serious injuries, even death. An airbag will not keep you from being ejected, but a seatbelt will prevent ejection in all kinds of crashes.
Seatbelts dramatically reduce the risks of injury and death
Here are the facts and figures relating to seatbelt safety:
- They reduce the risk of death by 45 percent.
- They lower the risk of critical injuries by 50 percent.
- With light trucks, the risk of death is reduced by 60 percent.
It’s the law in New Jersey for all passengers to wear seatbelts
If your passengers continue to refuse to wear a seatbelt, ask them to kindly do so because you could be opening yourself up to liability concerns, and you could get a ticket. In the state of New Jersey all passengers — regardless of whether they are in the front or back seat — must wear a seatbelt at all times. At the end of the day, you’re the driver, making you the “captain” of your vehicle. Therefore, you get to set the rules for all passengers in your car.
Can I pursue a claim if I wasn’t wearing a seatbelt in a crash?
If you suffer an injury in a car accident and you weren’t wearing a seatbelt, it won’t nullify your ability to hold the at-fault parties accountable. However, if your failure to wear a safety belt contributed to your injuries, it could result in the partial reduction of the liability of the at-fault party.