If it wasn’t the law would you wear a seat belt

[despairofbadscience]

Now I think the obvious answer to this is yes! However someone asked it a a party last night, and quite a few people so no or not on short journeys, maybe only in the front seat (type answers).

Really surprised me

Definitely

Yes. As a child I read a book, one of Roald Dahl’s autobiographies I think, where he had no seatbelt and he flew through the windscreen and almost lost his nose!

Also adverts of children in the back ricocheting off the driver’s headrest and killing them both. Even my dog has to wear a seatbelt!

I'm 74, wore them before they were compulsory. Reason,5 years working in the ED, seeing the injuries. Being in an RTC backseat passenger, I remember sil laughing at me wearing a seatbelt,car went up a bank,hit an oak tree, then fell sideways down onto the road. I doubt if I would be in one piece if it wasn't for the seatbelt.

I would now but happily didn't as a child and young adult. Lots of cars didn't have rear seat belts until it became law for children in the late 80s.

I always wear one because Jimmy Saville taught us to Clunk Click every Trip

Yes because I quite like my face at the front of my head.

Yes. I’m glad it’s so ingrained now.

Different but I ski… following a High profile death (Natasha Richardson) I started wearing a helmet. Now I’d say about 80% of European skiers do even though it’s not mandatory for adults. What’s bizarre is I recently found out that in America it isn’t mandatory to bring the chairlift barrier down. People occasionally fall off and die. Yet some opposed to barriers say they like to dangle feet and the barrier bangs heads. 😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫. Utter madness. I’m glad we have rules!

Until you get hit by someone speeding on the low speed road , the problem isn’t necessarily you it’s other road users .

Also, if I try and pull off and someone hasn’t buckled in the car beeps incessantly. Sometimes even if I have, for example, a crate of Coke on a seat.

It would feel wrong not to wear it; it’s so automatic. There are cars that won’t start until everyone is wearing a seatbelt.

I'm so sorry, what a horribly traumatic event.

Yes I’d feel far too mobile and unprotected

This is a joke, right?

Of course

Yes, definitely. I was born in 1957 and so for most of my childhood and young adulthood cars weren't fitted with them. Maybe brand new cars were but my parents, friends and family only had older cars. When I look back and think how haphazard things were, it makes me shudder.

I’ve been in countries where seat belts aren’t required and I have automatically looked for them, frequently they didn’t work or had been removed/not installed. It’s a hard question to answer if they weren’t physically there.

If I'm honest I wouldn't all the time. I don't even now, my job is parcel delivery and I often leave my seatbelt off between houses. I do however wear it if I'm going further than three or four houses, or faster than 5mph. My round is on an estate so I'm stopping every 5/6 houses on average and it's mostly terraced rather than detached, so short distances between deliveries.

Another car could easily hit you on a short journey and you can easily be sent through the windscreen and get smashed up at 10mph. To be perfectly honest, you're hardly likely to be driving a few feet at 10mph anyway are you? You might as well walk.

I never used to wear one, I had a work related exemption so used it. At some point along the way I did start wearing one. I’m embarrassed now tbh that I was so stupid, it was around 10-15 years ago and it still horrifies me to think about it.

Yes. It's automatic and I remember the ads people describe and horrific injuries people suffered before they were compulsory. My parents had them retro fitted to the back seats for us as soon as they realised how lethal it could be. They remember the days there was no alcohol limit. Dad used to drive home with an arm out the window to concentrate but that was before my time. Rod safety has improved immeasurably

Yes but I do it on auto pilot so would have to consciously remind myself not to put in on if I was planning not to use it if that makes sense. I grew up with parents who were pretty lax about car safety (4 kids in the back seats to go from Scotland to England!) and had to tell them off a few times when my kids were younger and going in their car. I remember as a child my gran used to hold the seat belt over her so it looked like she was wearing one which seems like more hassle than actually plugging one in 🙄

Yes. My paramedic son and fiancée have dealt with the aftermath of too many people who didn’t.

Yes because seriously what bothers people so much about them that it's such an inconvenience to wear one? I like being alive and not paralysed because of my own stupidity.

Yes of course. Don't most cars make really loud beeping noises if the front seats don't have their seat belts on?

I don't know what the length of the journey has to do with it, you could be hit at any time

Yes - it’s automatic to do so