Drivers who choose not to wear seat belt restraints are reportedly forty-two times more likely to be killed if they are involved in accidents than those who use them. According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, 63% of the persons killed in motor vehicle accidents in 2014 were not wearing seat belts.
The first seat belt legislation requiring motorists to buckle up was passed in 1985, and enforcement of the law began in 1987. In its infancy, the new safety law merely required anyone in the front seat to wear the device; any seat belt violation was considered to be a secondary offense at that time. The law, however, evolved throughout the years as our collection of reliable data expanded. While still considered a secondary offense for drivers and any passengers sixteen and older, it is now a primary offense for any passengers under the age of sixteen to not wear seat belts.
A traffic accident at the Lake of the Ozarks over the weekend firmly reiterated the importance of wearing seat belts. On the evening of Friday, October 9th, a Climax Springs resident driving a 1993 Chevrolet 2500 was traveling north on Highway 7 in Camden County when he attempted to pass the vehicle in front of him. The two vehicles collided, and both careened off of the roadway and struck a fence. The passing driver was not wearing his seat belt and sustained serious injuries after his pickup hit the fence and overturned. He was transported from the scene to Lake Regional Hospital in Osage Beach.
Additional information about safety belt law, traffic accidents, and personal injury representation by the law offices of Price & Randle can be found at http://pricerandle.com/
Citations
http://www.mshp.dps.missouri.gov/MSHPWeb/Root/ClickIt4LifeSeatBeltCampaign.html
http://www.moga.mo.gov/mostatutes/stathtml/30700001781.html
http://ghsa.org/html/stateinfo/bystate/mo.html
http://www.mshp.dps.missouri.gov/MSHPWeb/AboutThePatrol/History/documents/History80s.pdf
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seat_belt_legislation_in_the_United_States
