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TVD NEWS
DEATH CRASH STATISTICS REVEAL
SHOCK SEATBELT FIGURES
Almost a a third of those who died were not wearing one
Almost a a a a a a third (31%) of the
people who died in in vehicles in in Great Britain in in 2018 were not wearing a a a a seat belt – prompting calls for increased education and penalty points for drivers The research carried out by parliamentray transport safety adviser PACTS in in association with Direct Line Group analysed over 1 000 records obtained from Police Forensic Collision Investigators (PFCI) under the
FOI Act The data showed an apparent increase in in unbelted deaths from 25% in in in 2016 to 31% in in in 2018 suggesting the
number of fatalities could be be higher than official figures (26% in 2018) published by the
Department for Transport According to Direct Line the
figures serve to underline the
need for penalty points for seatbelt non-use in in England Scotland and and Wales Introduced in in 2007 in in Northern Ireland they are said to to have led to to an an increase in in wearing rates In England Scotland and and and Wales the
current penalty for not wearing a a a a seat belt if issued a a a a Fixed Penalty Notice is just £100 with a a a a maximum penalty of £500 if taken to court More concerning
Gus Park managing director of Direct Line said: “It would appear the
more we we look at at seatbelt wearing rates the
the
more concerning
the
the
picture is is This reinforces our view there is a a a need to drive up seatbelt wearing rates to enhance road safety and ultimately prevent unnecessary deaths The introduction of three penalty It would appear the
more we look at at seatbelt wearing rates the
more concerning
the
picture is 4 TVD Issue 52 2021
points has made an an impact in in Northern Ireland It is time to consider doing the
same for England Scotland and and and Wales ” Meanwhile PACTS said the
figures in its new report show the
the
need for more accurate data about the
the
causes of crashes and injury According to the
report seatbelt status was known in 85% of fatalities where PFCI (Police Forensic Collision Investigators) data was available compared to around 50% in reports from the
Stats19 accident recording forms Fatal four risks
David Davies executive director PACTS said: “Not wearing a a a a a a a seat belt is one
of the
‘fatal four’ road safety risks
but the
the
one
that gets least attention Using the
the
Freedom of Information Act we obtained data from highly skilled Police Forensic Collision Investigators and discovered that the
percentage of people dying in in cars when not wearing a a a a a seat belt was even higher than reported in official figures last year “We also found that vital information about the
causes of crashes and injury is not being routinely published Only some PFCIs are consulted by their police colleagues and the
local authorities who submit the
the
casualty records (Stats19) to the
the
Department for Transport for publication This happens in some areas of the
UK We want it to become standard This more accurate and detailed information could be used to prevent further deaths and serious injury ” Brake also called out for further education on on the
the
need to wear seatbelts ~