Primary seat belt law now travels to Senate

May 22, 2005

We were pleased to hear that Rep. Ronnie Townsend, R-Anderson, as chairman of the Education and Transportation Committee, championed passage of a primary seat belt law.

So was Speaker of the House David Wilkins, R-Greenville, whose statement of support for the legislation included kudos for "Ronnie Townsend and the many safety activists who worked tirelessly to both keep this bill alive and fight for its passage."

We’re disappointed that Rep. Michael D. Thompson voted against passage, but not surprised, as he has in the past expressed the view such a law would infringe upon individual rights. House Majority Leader Jim Merrill, R-Daniel Island, among others, agrees with him. "We’re criminalizing our citizens when they have done nothing wrong," Mr. Merrill told the Associated Press. "The only act they are performing is to themselves."

Well, not exactly.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, America’s employers pay $31 billion in insurance costs annually for employees involved in vehicle crashes. On-the-job accidents, the U.S. Department of Transportation estimates, cost employers around $22,000 per crash and $111,000 per injury. Wearing a seat belt, the agency’s studies found, reduces the risk of injury by 50 percent, of death by 45 percent. Seventy-five percent of people who are ejected during a crash will die.

We all pay in the end. The U.S. Department of Transportation estimates that each driver who buckles up is paying an additional $40 a year in premiums to cover the costs of those who don’t.

When costs increase, insurance companies may pass them on to their policyholders; employers may pass increases in health care coverage on to employees, including those who wear seat belts, have never had an accident and obey traffic laws.

We all pay when costs resulting from an accident, made more serious by the fact the person wasn’t wearing a seat belt, are covered by Medicaid or Medicare.

Still say no one else is affected?

Someone will always raise the point that not wearing a seat belt is safer, because then you won’t be trapped in your vehicle. The chance of being trapped is small, when compared to being tossed around like a sack of rocks in a glass house.

Even in a vehicle moving relatively slowly, an impact can toss an unrestrained body around like a rag doll, aiming it for the closest hard surface: a windshield, a steering wheel or a dash.

Rep. John Graham Altman, R-Charleston, exceeded the speed limit with which he inserted yet another foot into his mouth when he voted against the measure, if his comments can be relied upon, because it contains provisions to educate the public about the importance of seat belt usage. "Why would you want to go out and educate them?" he asked. "They should do it because it’s the law."

But it’s more than obedience of the law, which of course we advocate. The reason we support primary enforcement is not so officers can pass out tickets or collect fines. A primary seat belt law isn’t about raising money; it’s about raising awareness. It’s about educating the public that the person who doesn’t wear a seat belt isn’t the only one affected if there is an accident.

It’s about telling us not just that we should wear a seat belt but that we’re putting our lives at risk if we don’t, that wearing a restraint and making sure passengers, especially children, are properly restrained, is just common sense.

It’s about never understanding why anyone would fight such a simple way to save lives.

Copyright 2005, Anderson Independent Mail. All Rights Reserved.