Most people know the importance of wearing seat belts. We know that wearing a seat belt greatly improves our safety in the event we are involved in a road accident. We also know that it is illegal to not wear one. As drivers we must ensure we ourselves are wearing a seatbelt as well as the passengers in our vehicle.
In view of everything we know about the use of seat belts, there may be one thing you do not know, and probably have not considered – what are the implications of not wearing a seat belt in a road traffic accident for which you want to make a personal injury claim? Well, in answer to this, if you were not wearing a seat belt and you make a claim, any compensation which you may be entitled may be reduced by up to 25%. In legal speak this is known as contributory negligence.
The rules surrounding seat belts can be complex; however, for adults they are fairly simple. All individuals over the age of 14 must wear an adult seat belt (there can be some exceptions). For children under the age of 14 these rules can get a bit more complex as it is dependent on the age and height of the child as to whether they wear an adult seat belt or child restraint. More information regarding this can be found at http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/OwningAVehicle/AdviceOnKeepingYourVehicle/DG_4022064
In saying the above I can hazard a guess that most of us upon getting into a car place their seat belt on automatically. It is when travelling in vehicles such as minibuses and coaches that people may neglect to wear a seat belt. On a minibus you must always wear a seat belt or child restraint if one is fitted/available. On coaches and buses, if you are over 14, you must wear a seatbelt if one is fitted. Again, there are exceptions to the above.
At The Injury Lawyers we work hard on your behalf to get you the best possible amounts of compensation when being involved in a road traffic accident that was not your fault.