Why Rear Seat Belts Are Crucial

We make our children sit in the backseat of the car because most of us believe the idea that riding in the back seat is safer than riding in the front seat of the car. A common result of this myth is people not wearing their seatbelts in the back seat of vehicles. For those of you who do this – or let your children do this – is it an enormous and potentially deadly mistake to make. If a car accident were to happen, choosing not to buckle up in the backseat could mean the difference between living through the accident and sustaining fatal injuries.

Unbuckled in Back

The Governors Highway Safety Association created a report back in 2013 that revealed statistics that might make you think twice about not buckling up in the back seat. The report was called Unbuckled in Back: An Overlooked Issue in Occupant Protection and it let us know that 883 people who were not wearing their seat belt in the back seat died in vehicle accidents in 2013. Interestingly enough, that number was broken down into the type of vehicle:

    473 of those people were riding in the back seat of cars;
    244 were riding in the back seat of SUVs;
    98 were riding in the back seat of pickup trucks without a safety belt; and
    68 people were riding in the back seat of vans without their seat belt fastened.

Ejection from Vehicles

It may surprise you that people who choose to ride in the back seat of the vehicle without their seat belt on are three times more likely to be killed in a crash. The Department of Transportation reported that passengers who elect not to wear seat belts are increasing their chances of being ejected from a vehicle by thirty times. The statistic is the same whether a passenger is sitting in the front of the vehicle or the back. Out of those who are ejected from a vehicle, three out of four die as a result of their injuries.

We Are Here To Help

Are you more likely to wear your seat belt now when you ride in the back seat? Certainly, you should enforce that your children wear their safety belts, whether they are riding in the front seat or the back seat. The team at McAllister, Aldridge & Kreinbrink PLLC encourage you to wear your seatbelt every time you ride in the car – and to teach your children to do the same. If you are injured in a car accident, hopefully, the injuries will only be acute and you will not need to contact our office.