A shocking new Think! campaign to highlight the deadly consequences of not always wearing a seat belt was launched today by Road Safety Minister Jim Fitzpatrick.
New statistics show one life could be saved each day if all drivers and passengers belt up every time they get in a car.
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 £2.6m THINK! campaign 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 30mph.
One pilot scheme, in Tameside in August, saw 68 fixed penalty tickets issued in just three hours to people failing to wear seta belts, in a joint operation by Tameside's road safety team, police, fire & rescue and casualty reduction partnership Drivesafe.
In October a similar operation netted another 67. On both occasions they were given the option of attending a local fire station to see a road safety presentation on the dangers of not wearing a belt, in exchange for their ticket being waived.
In Cheshire, 68% of those pulled over during the Driver Engagement Days this year were stopped for not wearing a seat belt.
You are twice as likely to die in a crash if you are not wearing a seat belt and a new analysis of casualty figures shows about one life each day could be saved in Britain if everyone always wore a belt.
Seat belts have prevented an estimated 60,000 deaths and 670,000 serious injuries since 1983 when seat belts were made mandatory for drivers and front seat passengers.
The new THINK! campaign, which includes television, radio, cinema, ambient and online advertising, is based on detailed research into people's seat belt wearing habits. It showed that:
- People are less likely to wear seat beats on low speed, short journeys on familiar roads - even though they are still risking their lives in these cases.
- Young men are least likely to always wear a seat belt.
- Some people believe they don't need to wear a seat belt if the car has airbags. That's wrong - airbags are designed to be used with seat belts. They supplement them and will not provide adequate protection on their own.
The advert is so realistic and hard-hitting it can only be shown after 9pm. An edited version has been produced for earlier showings - describing but not showing the damage to internal organs.
LISTEN HERE: To the hard-hitting advert
