While most Minnesota motorists are making the right choice, lack of seat belt use still contributes to about half of all motorists killed each year.
Using the Minnesota State Patrol’s rollover simulator, this video demonstrates what happens to a person who is belted versus someone who is not wearing their seat belt. Watch as an unbelted crash test dummy tumbles inside the simulator, and see how a dummy that is not properly buckled, can be thrown from a vehicle.
CRASH FACTS:
In a crash, odds are four-times greater for injury if a motorist is not buckled up. Additional preliminary figures show:
• In 2014, 86 percent of unbelted deaths occurred in Greater Minnesota.
• From 2012 – 2014, 823 people were killed in Minnesota and only 52 percent were known to be belted.
• In 2014, 67 percent of drunk drivers who were killed in crashes were not wearing a seat belt.
Minnesota law states that drivers and passengers in all seating positions must be buckled up or seated in the correct child restraint. Under Minnesota law, officers can stop and ticket unbelted drivers or passengers. Seat belts must be worn correctly — low and snug across the hips, and shoulder straps should never be tucked under an arm or behind the back.
