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Buckle up

Many of us don't buckle up when we're on the road, not realising how dangerous it is. Here's why you should buckle up.

Buckle –Up Please! Always!
Feeling safe in front of your airbags but without your seatbelt... Don't! Air bags are designed to limit head, neck and chest injuries by creating a cushion between the occupant and the steering wheel, dashboard, windshield and other surfaces. But they only supplement safety belts, they do not replace them.

Why is an airbag on it own not sufficient?

Since air bags inflate in less than 1/25th of a second, faster than the blink of an eye, drivers and passengers who are unrestrained or are wearing only the lap portion of their safety belt can receive serious or even fatal injuries from deploying air bags.

The deployment of the passenger air bags have resulted in fatal head or neck injuries to children who were found to be completely unbuckled, "out of position," or wearing only the lap portion of the safety belt (improperly restrained) at the time of the crash.

So why are you still not wearing a seatbelt?
1. "I'm only going to the shopping center." Actually, this is the best time to wear a safety belt, since most accidents occur shortly after departure and close to home.

2. "I won't be in an accident: I'm a good driver." Consider that even if you're a good driver, a bad driver may still hit you.

3. "I'll just brace myself." Even if you had the split-second timing to do this, the force of the impact would shatter the arm or leg you used to brace yourself.

4."I'm afraid the belt will trap me in the car." Statistically, the best place to be during an accident is in your car. If you're thrown out of the car, you're 25 times more likely to die.

5. "They're uncomfortable." Modern seatbelts are allowing some movement – and is still more comfortable than a hospital bed!

Remember the following:

Always Buckle- up – it is the law and can save your life!

Children age 12 and under should ride in the back seat properly restrained.

Never allow children to ride in the laps of other passengers.

Using a properly fitted child seat or restraint can reduce fatal injuries by up to 75%. Kids might complain for a while – but that's better than the horrific alternative…

Wear it right – with both straps snugly fitted to transfer the impact of the collision to the parts of your body that can take it – your hipbones and shoulder bones.

Don't be killed by a back seat passenger – drivers should check their passenger's seat belts as well as their own.

Place any loose items in the car boot – the family shopping can kill.

Advice from the website www.arrivealive.co.za Made possible by Outsurance.