Seat Belts Save Lives In A Car Accident
New Jersey traffic authorities will be joining traffic authorities across the United States in creating awareness of the safety benefits of seat belt use during the Click It or Ticket campaign. This campaign is a yearly event and will run from May 18 to May 31. During the campaign, traffic officials will focus on people who are not using their seat belts, leaving themselves exposed to injury in case of a car accident.
The easiest way people can protect themselves against injury in a car accident is by buckling their seat belts. Seat belts use saved the lives of some 12,000 people in 2014. It is estimated that nearly 88 percent of people use front seat belts in New Jersey. By being highly visible, the authorities hope to improve the rate to 90 percent. By enforcing the laws regarding seat belt use of passengers in rear seats of motor vehicles and persons traveling at night, authorities hope to increase these rates as well.
During the current campaign, authorities plan to increase patrols and set up specific seat belt checkpoints. Although the main focus is on seat belt use, other traffic violations will not be ignored. During the campaign in 2014, 26,635 people received citations for not using seat belts, 4,363 drivers received summons for speeding and 944 people were arrested for DUI.
The use of a seat belt may save lives or at least save someone from serious injury when they are involved in a car accident. New Jersey victims seriously injured in a car accident where negligence is deemed the root cause may choose to file a personal injury claim against the alleged negligent driver, while the families of deceased victims may choose to file a wrongful death claim. Drivers, who do not ensure that minors traveling with them are buckled in, may be considered negligent and may have to answer in a court of law.
Source: hudsonreporter.com, “‘Click It or Ticket’ seat belt enforcement campaign runs May 18 to 31“, May 15, 2015
