Seatbelts

Whatever the emergency, you will be better prepared for it if you are wearing a seatbelt. This will at least halve your risk of death and injury and also allow your airbag(s) to do their job better.

Your seatbelt will keep you secure in the vehicle - those thrown out of vehicles in accidents are often killed. It is estimated that you are up to five times safer if you are held in your seat.

A vehicle hitting an obstruction will lose speed almost instantly. An unbelted driver or passenger will continue moving at the cars impact speed until they hit something. This could be a wall or tree if you are thrown out of the vehicle, the steering column, dashboard or windows if you are thrown around inside. Perhaps even worse, unbelted rear passengers (even small children) can be thrown forward with enough ferocity to smash the seat in front of them, killing the occupant (and often themselves).

Going slow doesn't help much ... At 30 mph the impact is approximately the same as hitting the ground when jumping from the roof of a three-storey building.

Seatbelts help drivers to regain control in a violently unstable vehicle by keeping them securely in the driving seat.