Share

How to stay safe on the roads this festive season - 'Never let your guard down and always buckle up!'

accreditation
<i>Image: iStock</i>
<i>Image: iStock</i>

As many motorists set off for various holiday destinations in December, road safety experts can hope, with all the awareness campaigns circulating, that all passengers in vehicles will buckle up.

Can we, however, be sure that once motorists safely reach their destinations that they continue the practice? If you drive a kilometre or two to the beach, do you always wear your seatbelt?

'Never let your guard down'

The managing director of MasterDrive, Eugene Herbert, asks when people are in relaxation mode, with city traffic and long trips behind them, do they sometimes forget or forgo their seatbelts?

READ: Buckle them up! Failure to use seatbelts is a major risk in saving children on SA roads

"The key to safe driving is to never let your guard down. Whether you need to drive 2km down the road or 200km to your destination, your seatbelt is just as important either way," he says.

"To understand why a seatbelt is important, we need to understand the role it plays in a crash. When you collide with something, three impacts take place. The first impact is with the object that you drive into.

Small part, big difference

"The second impact is your body colliding with other people or objects in the car. The last impact is your internal organs colliding with other organs in your body," adds Herbert.

                                                                       Image: iStock

"The job of the seatbelt is to prevent you from being flung from the car, being flung into others in the car and to spread the force of stopping suddenly across the sturdier parts of your body," says Herbert.

Another important part of seatbelt safety this holiday season is ensuring your child is safely buckled up.

                                                                          Image: iStock

"Never allow your children to skip wearing their seatbelt so that they can lie flat across the seat or in the back of a bakkie. Keep an eagle eye on them to ensure that they do not put the top strap behind their bodies to be more comfortable," he says.

"If your child is too old for a car or booster seat there are items you can buy to make a seatbelt more comfortable for them.

"There is not, however, anything that you can do to protect them should you be in a crash and they are not safely strapped in. Find a way to stress the importance of a seatbelt to your children, especially to older children," says Herbert.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE