Reported Seat Belt Use Is Up But Study Suggests that Improvement Still Needed Among Certain Groups

MALVERN, Pa. – Reported use of seat belts or child restraints among bodily injury auto accident claimants has nearly doubled in the past decade (from 43 percent in 1987 to 87 percent in 1997), according to a recent Insurance Research Council (IRC) study. The study found that usage is highest among women and older adults and lowest among children seven to sixteen years old. Not surprisingly, accident victims who reported wearing seat belts were much less likely to be seriously injured, disabled, or killed in an accident than those not wearing seat belts.

Elizabeth A. Sprinkel, senior vice president who heads the IRC, said, "It is clear that increased public education on the effectiveness of seat belt use in saving lives and the enactment of seat belt laws have been successful in encouraging Americans to buckle up. However, more work needs to be done to increase use among all Americans – especially children and teens."

By vehicle type, reported usage is highest among occupants of passenger cars and SUVs and lowest among occupants of pickup trucks. This is of concern because pickup trucks, like SUVs, have a greater propensity than other vehicles to roll over in an accident. The study reveals that rollover accidents occurring in pickup trucks result in higher disability and fatality rates, perhaps in part because of lower seat belt usage among these vehicle occupants.

The study also suggests that SUVs might not be the best choice of vehicle for teen drivers, since these inexperienced drivers tend to overcorrect when turning, resulting in an even greater likelihood of rolling the vehicle. The data show that teenage SUV drivers (age twenty or younger) are more likely than older SUV drivers to roll over the vehicle. This, coupled with the fact that teens are less likely than older drivers to buckle up, can mean greater risk of injury for these drivers.

These findings are contained in IRC’s new study, Characteristics of Auto Accidents: An Analysis of Auto Injury Claims. This study examines the nature and key characteristics of motor vehicle accidents and claimants based on a 1997 survey of 80,009 closed auto insurance claim files (the most recent year for which data are available). The study characterizes the severity of accidents with respect to four main areas: 1) the characteristics of the accident in terms of location, impact severity, number of vehicles involved, point of impact, police involvement, and when the accident occurred; 2) the characteristics of the driver of the insured vehicle in terms of gender, age, and violations/citations issued; 3) the characteristics of the insured vehicle in terms of vehicle type, model year, and use of safety features such as air bags and antilock brakes; and 4) the characteristics of the claimant in terms of position in the vehicle, seat belt use, gender, and age.