Do you wear your seatbelt?

[crtrlovr]

always, each & every time. I also want to mention some handy-dandy seat belt adjusters that are a life saver for me. I've seen them in the Carol Wright catalogs, Miles Kimball, etc. They fit onto the lap belt and the shoulder belt slips under a long tab. You can then slide it into a position a few inches away from where the belt buckles in, and it will move the shoulder strap away from your neck and more across the shoulder (where it belongs!). They work quite well for us shorter people who always end up feeling like if we DID get into an accident, we'd end up being decapitated by our own seat belt... They work great. Someone told me they'd even seen some at Wally world recently. They're worth every cent -- I've got one on every seat belt of every vehicle we have.

 

[ChooksChick]

Quote:
Yep- that's me. I've been in more wrecks than I can count- we used to joke I made cars invisible by getting in. I'm never going to allow an unbelted rider if I'm in a car, whether it's mine & I'm driving or not.

I don't see a "HECK, YEAH!" answer on the poll...

 

[angelique_redhead]

*High fives the other dinosaur* I remember our cars not having seat belts for years. I remember the filling stations too. Particularly Shell and the one with "put a tiger in your tank". I HATE, LOATH, and DESPISE seatbelts as I'm short and they catch me right across the neck underneath my earlobe but I DO wear them all the time. I figure it will not be the wreck that kills me but decapitation or damage from the seatbelt. We all have to go some time though. Seatbelts are worn by everyone in my car or it's not going anywhere.

: Angelique

Quote:
I must be REALLY old!

When I was a kid our Ford station wagon didn't have seat belts, or head rests or fuel injection. I remember the carburetor always getting gunked up and leaded gasoline at filling stations where they always pumped gas for you and checked the oil. We even got free glasses and gifts for filling up at some stations. Ahhh, the good old days......

 

[PortageGirl]

I got T-boned and rolled over by an idiot who "didn't see" the stop sign, and then said I hit HER when the SIDE of my car was smashed in and I got rolled into a deep ditch. I had my seat belt on and had a few bruises instead of a broken neck and who knows what else from getting thrown all over the place when the car did the topsy-turvy thing.

The witnesses were sure I would be hurt, but I was able to boost myself up and out of the passenger window. HECK YES I wear my seatbelt! Oh, and I too grew up before they were in cars, and before bicycle helmets either, but the one I wore when I got hit by another car also saved me from a really bad brain loss problem, as in brain all over the road! I wear them TOO!!! A minor concussion is much better then a coffin.

 

[fldiver97]

Always wear them......did some EMT work and have seen ugly things, worked in a Trauma Center for many years and it brought the message about helmets and seatbelts and airbags home. My father on the other hand always used the 'excuse' that he knew someone that drove off the road in a lake and drowned because he could not unbuckle.....He knows he has to wear a seatbelt when he is in my car and he makes everyone buckle up though.......I have been rear-ended a few times and the belt saved me from having close encounters with the steering wheel and/or windshield or breaking my lower extremities. Never more than minor injuries. Risk vs benefit of seatbelts - in my opinion not a question!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So used to it by now that I feel naked when I pull out of the garage without the seatbelt on first

 

[crtrlovr]

Quote:
I must be REALLY old!

When I was a kid our Ford station wagon didn't have seat belts, or head rests or fuel injection. I remember the carburetor always getting gunked up and leaded gasoline at filling stations where they always pumped gas for you and checked the oil. We even got free glasses and gifts for filling up at some stations. Ahhh, the good old days......


always, each & every time. I also want to mention some handy-dandy seat belt adjusters that are a life saver for me. I've seen them in the Carol Wright catalogs, Miles Kimball, etc. They fit onto the lap belt and the shoulder belt slips under a long tab. You can then slide it into a position a few inches away from where the belt buckles in, and it will move the shoulder strap away from your neck and more across the shoulder (where it belongs!). They work quite well for us shorter people who always end up feeling like if we DID get into an accident, we'd end up being decapitated by our own seat belt... They work great. Someone told me they'd even seen some at Wally world recently. They're worth every cent -- I've got one on every seat belt of every vehicle we have.

see the info about the seat belt adjusters -- I LOVE them!

 

[chickensducks&agoose]

Vermont has signs everywhere saying Click it or Ticket.... they'll pull you right over if they see anyone (even adults) without a seat belt. I always wear a seat belt, and so do my kids... my 3 year old and 5 year old are in 5 point restraints, and my 7 1/2 year old is in a booster... and he will be until he's at least 8

this is from the vt safety department website


Vehicle seats and seat belts are designed for adult-sized bodies that are at least 4'9" tall and about 80 pounds. When you put your child in a seat belt too soon the following can happen:

The lap belt can ride up above the pelvis (hip bone) onto the abdomen, or
tummy. When this happens, the internal organs can be damaged in a crash. This is called "seat belt syndrome". In some cases, the spinal cord can be damaged and the child can become paralyzed.
The shoulder belt crosses the face and neck and can bother the child. Because of this, children sometimes place the shoulder belt behind the back or under the arm. This leaves him with no protection for the upper body. In a crash, this can cause broken ribs and internal organ injuries. It also causes head injuries, a very serious concern as the brain is the organ least likely to recover from injury.
Booster seats protect against serious injury three and one half times better than seat belts. Booster seats protect against head injury four times better than seat belts.

 

[booker81]

MI is a Click It or Ticket state - we always wear belts, and DD is in a very high rated carseat. I have no use for a seatbelt ticket!

My dad doesn't wear a belt, and had a waiver thing to NOT have to wear it due to a myriad of physical issues, one of which is that the belt would rub/tear off his ostomy bag (yuck). The local cops by them don't bother him, they know of it, but when he's out and about or if he's a passenger, he will loop the belt on his arm to avoid us getting pulled over

 

[herfrds]

Mainly wear it driving down the highway. When I'm in a fire truck or ambulance. it is a pain trying to hop out of the fire truck to do something and you forget you have it on.

But just around our place or going from tractor site to tractor site I just don't wear it even though i know I should.

 

[peepdaddy]

ALWAYS. Several years ago I wrecked a pontiac Grand Prix. I met a large truck in a curve. The road was 11.5 feet wide and our 2 vehicles measured a combined ~13 feet. He was on the inside of the curve against the hill and I was on the outside next to a steep drop-off. My choice was to hit him or go over the hill. I rolled 2.5 times, ending up with my car on it's top and me hanging from my seatbelt. The car was totaled. Every window was broken. I had a small, superficial scratch on my right shoulder as my only injury! Without the seatbelt I would have tumbled around in the car like laundry in a dryer and very possibly went out a window.