Police issue unsecured seatbelt warning to Crewe drivers (From Crewe Guardian)

Police issue unsecured seatbelt warning to Crewe drivers

9:07am Wednesday 13th March 2013 in News

CREWE residents are advised to belt up this week as Cheshire Police continue their Operation Macaroon seatbelt safety campaign.

Coinciding with a European seatbelt enforcement initiative, the operation aims to reduce estimated 10 per cent of adult front seat passengers who still don’t buckle up.

Cheshire Police are staging targeted enforcement across Cheshire all week.

According to the Department for Transport’s Think campaign, drivers and passengers aged 17-34 have the lowest seatbelt wearing rates, combined with the highest accident rate.

Drivers who fail to wear seatbelts in the front and back of vehicles face on the spot fines of £60. If prosecuted, the maximum fine can be £500.

Sergeant Rachel Gallagher said: "Anyone who is in a car, irrespective of where they are sat, will endanger all other passengers in that vehicle if they are not wearing a seatbelt.

“If you are not wearing a seatbelt, you are likely to be thrown from your vehicle and potentially crushed if that vehicle rolls."

Six similar campaigns run by Cheshire Police during the past three years show a continued increase in seatbelt offences. In March 2012, 139 tickets were issued, rising to 279 for September in the same year.

A Cheshire Police spokesman said: “This indicates that the message is still not getting through to motorists to drive safely and without risk to your passengers.”

The Facts More than 90 per cent of adult front seat passengers and drivers wear seat belts, as do 66 per cent of adult rear seat passengers. If wearing rates in the rear were as high as those in the front, a further 30 adult lives would be saved each year.

Since the law to wear seatbelts in the front was introduced in 1983, front seat belts are estimated to have saved 50,000 lives, 590,000 serious casualties and 1.5 million minor injuries.

Fifteen front seat occupants are killed annually by the impact of an unbelted rear seat passenger Seat belt wearing rates are higher in rural areas (93 per cent) than in urban areas (89 per cent) Women (94 per cent) are more conscientious than men (86 per cent) at wearing a seat belt.