stature--and children in particular--so hard that they could be seriously hurt or even killed. A 1973 study suggested that three-point (lap and shoulder) seat belts were more effective and less risky than air bags anyway. But as air-bag technology improved, automakers began to install them in more and more vehicles, and by the time the 1991 law was passed, they were a fairly common feature in many cars. Still, the law gave carmakers time to overhaul their factories if necessary: It did not require passenger cars to have air bags until after September 1, 1997. (Truck manufacturers got an extra year to comply with the law). Researchers estimate that air bags reduce the risk of dying in a head-on car accident by 30 percent, and they agree that the bags have saved more than 10,000 lives since the late 1980s. (Many of those people were not wearing seat belts, which experts believe have saved more than 211,000 lives since1975.) Today, they are standard equipment in almost 100 million cars and trucks. About The Dysart Law Firm, P.C. The Dysart Law Firm, P.C. is a St. Louis based car accident law firm that serves clients throughout the States of Missouri and Illinois, including the City of St. Louis, St. Louis County, Columbia, St. Charles, O'Fallen, Springfield, Jefferson City, Cape Girardeau, Alton, Granite City, Edwardsville, Wood River, Roxana, Belleville, East St. Louis, Collinsville, Rockford, Naperville, Peoria, Elgin, Champaign, Carbondale and Mount Vernon. . The firm's practice includes car accidents, truck accidents, pedestrian