If you have ever walked down the halls of an elementary school in Florida, you have probably seen student-drawn posters with slogans like “seatbelts save lives” and “buckle up for safety.” The seatbelt has become a byword for safety and caution. Many of the drivers on the road today would never dream of shifting the transmission into drive without first buckling their seatbelts, and if they tried, their cars would make annoying sounds to nag them about it until they buckled up; the others account for a disproportionate share of traffic fatalities.
Despite all the research that goes into developing car safety features, motor vehicle safety engineers have yet to design a safety feature safer than the humble seatbelt. The good news is that if you wear a seatbelt and get into a car accident, your injuries will be less severe than they would be without the seatbelt. The bad news is that if you do not wear a seatbelt and you get into an accident, your injuries will be worse than they would have been if you had buckled up, and insurance companies know this. A Miami car accident lawyer can help you get a fair insurance settlement after a car accident, even if the insurance companies assigned part of the fault to you because you were not wearing a seatbelt.
Not Your Grandpa’s Seatbelt
In many accidents, a seatbelt makes the difference between life and death. Even a simple lap belt, such as has been a standard feature of cars since the 1960s, is very effective at preventing a rider from being ejected from the car. Most collisions are survivable as long as you don’t get ejected from the vehicle; in this regard, airbags make a big difference, too. Today’s seatbelts are even safer, though. Not only are front and rear seatbelts a one-piece combination of the shoulder strap and lap belt, but seatbelts also have pre-tensioners that tighten when they sense sudden forward movement, as well as load limiters that ensure the seatbelt tightens enough to keep you stationary but not enough to cause injury.
Which Seat in the Car is the Safest?
There is no business in arguing over who gets to ride shotgun. No matter where you sit in the car, you are always safer with a seatbelt than without one. Almost every seat in the car can take a direct hit in a T-bone crash, where the front of one car strikes the side of another. The only seat in the car that is not vulnerable to a direct impact is the middle seat in the rear. Therefore, the rear middle seat is the best place to secure your child’s car seat.
Contact Gerson & Schwartz About Car Accident Cases
A car accident lawyer can help you get the money you need to cover your accident-related medical bills if you are partially at fault for your accident because you did not wear a seatbelt. Contact Gerson & Schwartz in Miami, Florida, to discuss your case.