Ask Pete

[#1]

It was a sad sight, indeed…I was on I-75 when traffic suddenly started to slow down, ultimately becoming an absolute crawl. This was not your typical onlooker delay. This was something very serious.

As I approached what appeared to be a crash site, I could see quite a few emergency vehicles, as well as law enforcement. There had been a tragic rollover accident, and there was a chalk line next to a vehicle still on its side. It appeared that someone had been ejected from the vehicle.

Being a parent of what are now grown adults, I can recall being adamant about not putting the car in gear until everyone was buckled up. It just became habit for me and my family, no matter if we were going across the country or to the store up the street; the seatbelts went on and stayed on the entire trip.

I grooved this practice long before the seatbelt law went into effect. I learned many years ago as a result of a car crash of my own that the seatbelt saved my life. I always thought, “That only happens to the other guy,” but once I proved that I was the other guy, I quickly realized how important putting on a seatbelt could be.

Aside from the financial impact of not wearing your seatbelt—a traffic citation—the simple fact is that buckling up could save your life. What more motivation do you need?

[#2]

This is SO true. The simple act of buckling up can have such a profound effect on your safety. I know all sorts of people who have been in accidents but were protected by their seatbelts, and I unfortunately also know of tragic situations that resulted from driving without any restraints. Some of the worst offenders are people 65 and older who grew up without seatbelt laws. My mother-in-law insists that her friends snap in before she'll start the car. Many of them are resistant, but they realize they have to abide by her rules in her car. I respect her willingness to aggravate her friends for their own safety!

[#3]

Big Kudos to you and your mother-in-law! Thanks!

[#4]

As a 6 yr old, I saw an accident right in front of my home in a residential area with a 25 mile an hour speed limit. The passenger went through the windshield (in a era before tempered glass). It was very traumatic. This memory always stayed with me and has ingrained in me that nobody goes without a seatbelt in our vehicles. The car isn't put in gear until everyone has clicked it.

[#5]

WOW, Vicki. Thanks for sharing that. I also will never forget the first time I saw a traffic fatality first-hand. I was in my twenties, so certainly less traumatic than your experience, but no less haunting. If nothing else, those individuals that were lost taught us, and hopefully many others, a life-long lesson.

[#6]

I hate to admit that when I was younger I was not so, er...  fastidious about wearing my seatbelt.  Fortunately, I was wearing it when I was hit by someone.  That accident taught me a lesson.  It could have been a bad scene, that's for sure.  These days it's almost second nature and when I have passengers, they have them on before we move.