Safety belt use, reinforced by effective safety belt laws, is a proven life saver. All states except one have safety belt use laws, but only 17 states and the District of Columbia have standard enforcement of their belt laws. In states with standard enforcement, law officers may ticket a non-belt user when they see a violation of the safety belt law. With secondary enforcement laws, officers may issue a citation only after stopping the vehicle for another traffic infraction. Safety belt use is significantly higher in states with standard enforcement laws compared to those with secondary enforcement laws.
Research shows that when adults buckle up, children get buckled up too.
Standard enforcement is important not only for raising adult safety belt use, but also for increasing the number of children who are protected by occupant restraints. Safety belts are credited with saving the lives of 11,088 passenger vehicle occupants over age 4 in 1998. Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death and injury for American children. Average inpatient costs for traffic crash victims who did not use safety belts were 50 percent higher than for victims who were belted. When properly used, child safety seats reduce the risk of death by 69 percent for infants and by 47 percent for toddlers.