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Do you know who is driving your child home? It may interest parents to know the results of a recent survey conducted by the AA/Populous. The survey asked 18,500 AA members what they considered was the biggest threat to young adults. The highest risks were considered to be: Drugs 31%, Drinking 25%, Gun/ knife crime 25%, Driving 11%, Smoking 4%, Sex 1%, Disease >1% and Other 2%. This shows how much parents under estimate the real threat. In fact, statistics show that 74% of accidental teenage deaths happen on the road. We have all seen the recent news stories relating the government’s attempts to improve road safety within the 17-25 yr age group by targeting newly qualified drivers, and to a certain extent this is slowly having an effect, however, last year in the 16-19 year old age group, more teenagers died as passengers (94) than as drivers (79). This is the first time that passenger deaths have overtaken driver deaths since 2004, and shows the importance for parents to vet the drivers and cars that their offspring are to travel in. These statistics sit alongside another report, also from the AA, regarding the wearing of seatbelts. A third of all car occupants killed are not wearing seatbelts when travelling in vehicles. And rear seat passengers are highlighted as having one of the lowest seat belt wearing rates, along with men (especially young men) and company car drivers. Although legally, it is the individuals own responsibility to wear their seatbelt once over the age of 14, the driver, and in fact anyone else travelling in a car, has a responsibility to ensure the safety of others. Lets face it, a loose, 100-150lb dead weight flying around inside a car in the event of an accident, won’t be good for anyone else in the vehicle whether they are wearing their seatbelts or not!
Halves the risk of death in a collision The importance of this is illustrated when you consider that seatbelts more than halve the risk of death in a collision and the 7% not wearing a seatbelt are over-represented in fatalities. In fact the sort of drivers who choose not to wear their seatbelts are twice as likely to be involved in an accident as those who do belt up. Drivers of private hire cars, vans, lorries, buses, coaches and minibuses are the worst offenders with only 69% regularly wearing seatbelts. Many of these drivers seem to be under the misapprehension that they do not have to wear a belt, however the rules are the same for them as car drivers. Drivers of vehicles constructed or adapted to carry goods are exempt providing their journey does not exceed 50 metres, and private hire drivers are exempt ONLY while carrying fare paying passengers. Only taxis licensed to pick up when hailed, known as Hackney carriages, are exempt when empty providing they are on duty. So what could not wearing a seatbelt cost you? Currently the penalties range from a £60 fixed penalty fine, up to a maximum of £500 if it goes to court. Or, of course, you could pay the ultimate price with your life....
David Hurst
It’s hard to face the problem, when the problem is your face.