Back in 1983 it became law that, with very few exceptions, seat belts had to be worn if they were fitted to your car. Of course, all modern cars have, for many years, had seat belts fitted as standard.
Do wear your seat belt when required to do so
So, why is it that a poll carried out by LV has revealed that about 6% of drivers do not bother to wear their seat belt when they should be doing so? This means that in the region of 2 million motorists are committing an offence.
If you are caught not wearing a seat belt then you could face an on-the-spot fine of £100 with the maximum fine being £500. Perhaps rather surprisingly, being caught without a seat belt does not incur any penalty points on your driving license. Had this been the case it may have encouraged more people to put their seat belt on.
However, it is worth noting that if you were involved in a motoring accident whilst not wearing your seat belt then this could have an impact on your claim through your car insurance company.
It is a known fact that should someone be involved in a motoring accident they are much more likely to either suffer a serious injury or be killed if they had not been wearing a seat belt than somebody who had the sense to put one on. Over the years, there have been a number of videos shown on TV depicting a car accident and the injuries people could suffer because they have not worn seat belts. No doubt they will have got the message across to some people not wearing them but obviously not enough.
One would have thought that the combination of potentially suffering a serious injury or even death, paying a fine of up to £500 and it affecting your claim on your car insurance would deter people from not bothering to put their seat belt on.
So, do remember to “clunk click every trip”.
