Seat Belt Use in Florida

 
Its the law, but do we all buckle up? We try to. We mean to. But do we?

Florida has been concerned about driving safely for quite a while. Long before the national Click-it-or Ticket campaign was started.   Annual statewide seat belt surveys have been held in Florida since the early 1990’s. Based on NHTSA approved survey methods, the overall usage in Florida has increased to 87.4% from about 60% usage in the early 1990’s.

The survey took into account such things as time of day, road type, gender, etc. What was found, among other things, was that as has always been the case, seat belt usage was lower among males than females (84.2% v. 90.7%) and that usage was typically higher on higher speed roadway types (interstates).

A defensive driving course would show you that accidents by men or women, at any speed, can be hazardous to your health. A crash at 35mph can be just as fatal as it can be at 65 mph.

Since this week is the National Drive Safely to Work week, try to focus on your driving behaviors.  Use your seat belt. Pay attention to the various distracted driving issues, such as texting while driving or using your cell phone while driving. Maybe this is the week to remind yourself to take a defensive driving course, as a refresher, and for possible discounts for auto insurance.