Motoring
One life could be saved each day if all drivers and passengers belted up every time they got in a car, according to a newly launched Government campaign.
Graphic images of the fatal damage caused to internal organs are shown in a new TV advert highlighting the three devastating crashes you experience in a road accident if you are not wearing a seat belt.
The £2.6 million campaign launched under the THINK! banner comes after research showed that while very few people never wear a seat belt, many drivers and passengers are gambling with their lives by not belting up every time they get in a car.
They are risking death or serious injury, even at everyday speeds like 30 mph. If you have a crash without wearing a seat belt you actually experience three crashes, even at everyday speeds like 30 mph. First, your car crashes and stops. Second - because there is nothing to stop you moving - your body carries on and hits the inside of the car. Third, you stop but your internal organs keep moving, hitting the inside of your body and tearing under the force of the impact.
Occupants are twice as likely to die in a crash if you are not wearing a seat belt. Seat belts have prevented an estimated 60,000 deaths and 670,000 serious injuries since 1983 when they were made mandatory for drivers and front seat passengers.
Surely for the sake of a few seconds to belt up, tragic senseless waste of lives could be saved. Be warned, the TV advert is very hard hitting, but it needs to be.
Jackie Violet – Female First