Buckle up in all seats: Using rear seat belts

The state of New Jersey is set to become the 23rd state (when the law goes into effect in 2011) to require all rear passengers to ride restrained. Signed by Governor Jon Corzine before he left office, the rear seat belt law will be a secondary offense—meaning drivers will have to be pulled over for another offense to receive a ticket. The seat belt law for front seat riders in NJ is a primary offense, so you can get ticketed from just that infraction. The former governor knows a bit about the dangers of riding without a seat belt as he was severely injured in 2007 in a crash while riding unbelted.

Laws vary from state to state, with some covering front seats or all seats as a primary offense or all as secondary. Nineteen states have secondary offenses for front and/or rear seat belt use. Currently, only New Hampshire does not have any seat belt law.

The latest data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) shows that seat belt use in rear seats is at 74 percent up from 47 percent in 2004. Front seat belt use is at 83 percent. Studies show that both front and rear seat belt use is higher in states where the laws are stricter and that equates to more lives saved.

In 2008, there were 707 deaths in passenger cars where occupants were unrestrained in the rear seats compared to 425 fatalities where people were restrained. In light trucks, that number is 529 deaths of unrestrained occupants compared to 255 deaths of those restrained. While it is not known whether the deaths were caused by not being restrained, it is clear that the number of deaths is higher for unrestrained occupants and safety belt use could be a factor. While the rear seat is typically the safest place in a car, unrestrained back seat passengers can become projectiles in a crash and injure or kill other occupants in a vehicle or be more likely to be ejected in a crash.

Even though rear seat occupancy is relatively low versus the front seat, a recent study by the American Journal of Preventive Medicine has found that risk exposure is high. They determined that when comparing the protection of front seat vs. rear seat passengers that the difference in safety between front and rear seat passengers has been reduced as the advancement of front seat safety technologies has made the front seats safer than they used to be. They also determined that rear seat belt use among adults and older children was low only at 50 percent (vs. 82 percent for front passengers) increasing their risk for injury. The study notes that these exposure patterns are reasons to push for belt use and the development of future crash protection systems similar to those developed for front seats, for rear-seat passengers.

So, how do we get to a higher rate of seat belt use? NHTSA's research shows that stricter laws and programs such as Click it or Ticket work to increase compliance. A study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) found that enhanced seat belt reminders are helping to save lives. About 90 percent of 2009 vehicles have enhanced visual and audible alerts for front seat passenger that last longer than eight seconds. A larger NHTSA study found that these reminders raised belt use by three percent. However, rear seat belt reminders are more costly and more complex due to removable seats and child safety seats. Until manufacturers can find a cost effective way to add them, then enhanced laws and police enforcement (as well as driver involvement) will continue to be the best way to increase the safety of rear passengers.

For now, make sure your rear seat passengers are as well restrained as they would be in the front seats in either the vehicle seat belts or appropriate child restraints.