Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
Buckle up and help to save lives on the road
A new hard-hitting campaign is warning Monklands drivers that not wearing a seatbelt could cost them their lives.
Running across TV, cinema, radio, digital and outdoor channels, an ad features a car with a crash test dummy – not wearing a seatbelt – in the driver’s seat.
As the car starts to drive towards a wall, the camera pans away from the impact and focuses on the effects on the driver’s family as they deal with their grief.
The safety campaign – run by the Scottish Government and Road Safety Scotland – also focuses on the devastating impact on the loved ones left behind.
A crash test dummy family are seen sitting at a dinner table with an empty seat poignantly left for their lost family member as the final line appears: “It’s not just you who gets hurt. Wear a seatbelt.”
Wearing a seatbelt reduces both fatal and non-fatal injuries by 60 per cent among front seat passengers and 44 per cent among rear seat passengers.
Superintendent Simon Bradshaw, deputy head of road policing, said: “Wearing a seatbelt is not a choice, it’s the law and the evidence is clear that seatbelts save lives; it’s not just you that could get hurt if you don’t.
“Our officers will interact with and educate drivers and passengers where necessary but we will also continue to take appropriate enforcement action and those caught not wearing a seatbelt could be fined up to £500.
“We’re also reminding drivers it’s their responsibility to ensure all passengers under-14 wear their seatbelts, and they can be fined for every child not properly restrained.”
Minister for Transport Graeme Dey added: “The consequences of not wearing your seatbelt can be devastating if a collision occurs – not only for the driver and passengers but for other people, including your loved ones.
“This campaign delivers a stark but necessary message to anyone travelling in a car; it’s not just you who gets hurt. Wear a seatbelt on every journey.”
Figures show, on average, 13 per cent of those killed on the roads in Scotland over the last five years were not wearing a seatbelt.
And only three-quarters of drivers considered not wearing a seatbelt as “very serious”, well below the 93 per cent who consider drink-driving and drug-driving to be “very serious”.
The campaign and advert can be viewed on Road Safety Scotland’s Facebook and Twitter pages with the hashtag @ Roadsafetyscot.