Listen to your mom and buckle up!

Driving is a privilege that should be taken very seriously through Drivers Education because it reduces the number of automobile related deaths. When taking drivers education, the student required to be knowledgeable on importance and legal requirements of wearing a seat belt, following speed limits, awareness of street signs, drug, and alcohol consumption laws and so much more. Through these classes, students are also exposed to important statistic. For example, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, a federal agency that regulates the safety of motor vehicles and related equipment said in 2020 that that it is important to wear a seatbelt no matter where you are sitting in a vehicle because 60% of back seat passengers that were killed in an automobile crash were unbuckled. One of the safest choices that every driver can make is to buckle up and to tell every passenger in their car to do the same.

I remember when I was in first grade and wanting so badly to get out of my booster seat because in my opinion, I was too old to sit in one. I was embarrassed that not everyone in class still were made to sit in car seats. My mom always insisted that I sat in one and insisted on checking my seatbelt even after I was already old enough to put it on by myself. My mom came to pick me up one day after school, when a distracted teen-driver rear ended our car while at a stop sign that caused our car to hit the curb and the stop sign itself. The air bag of our car did not deploy but the car that hit us did. I had a red welt that eventually became a non-serious bruise across the chest from my seatbelt. The young driver that hit our car sustained some bruising on her face. I remember that she was crying hysterically, and my mom told her it was going to be OK and that she was only glad that no one was seriously injured. I remember then how grateful my mom was that I had my seatbelt on and that it was adjusted correctly to my height, or I would have been thrown off my seat. I remember the police coming to take a report and the mother of the young driver who immediately came. She was crying too and was telling my mom that she was lucky because she was wearing her seatbelt and that her air bag deployed that kept her face from hitting the stirring wheel.

I am now eighteen years old, and I have been driving for over a year. I have been very mindful of wearing my seatbelt and not turning my car on until all my passengers are buckled up…specially those in the backseat! I think back of my mom and the other mom on the day of the accident many years ago. I think about how much pain and suffering would have been incurred if we were not wearing our seatbelts. I am so lucky that my mom always insisted on car seats and seatbelts. I know that when I become a parent someday that I will also insist to buckle my kids in their car seats no matter how persistent they become about not wanting to be in one or not wanting to wear their seatbelt in the backseat.

Everyone knows that using a lap and shoulder belt reduces those chances of fatal injury in car crashes. It is their first line defense against intoxicated, distracted, or fast and furious drivers. Despite this knowledge, there are still some who forgets to wear one or refuses to wear a seatbelt. The bottom line is seat belts save lives. It will prevent serious injuries and prevent the severity of head and spinal injuries, broken bones, whiplash and more. Seat belts can keep passengers from getting ejected. While airbags are extra safety features in cars, it cannot protect you alone. If you are not wearing a seatbelt, an airbag can seriously injure you or cause death. It is illegal to not wear a seatbelt. There are monetary fines to pay if you get pulled over, plus court fees and points added to your auto insurance that will cause your monthly payments to go up. In other words, buckle up correctly, save your money, and stay safe by always wearing a seatbelt! Be a good example to your passengers and do not start driving until everyone in the car buckles up!