Rear seat occupants who fail to buckle up are three times more likely to be killed, according to AAA New York State. In 2017, 34 unbelted rear seat occupants ages 16+ were killed and 2,600 were injured. This accounts for one injury every three hours across New York State.

Current New York State law only requires children younger than 16 to be restrained in the back seat of a motor vehicle. AAA believes that it is counterintuitive that at the age when children are most vulnerable, the requirement to wear a seat belt is lifted—and therefore urges New York State legislators to approve the lifesaving rear seat belt requirement in this year’s budget. It has passed the NYS Senate, and still needs to pass the NYS Assembly before it moves to the desk of Governor Cuomo.

AAA New York State’s 2016 report, “Buckle Down on Safety,” found teens 16+ were least likely to wear their seat belt and were more likely to be killed or injured than any other age group. An unbelted rear passenger is:

•    3x more likely to be killed
•    8x more likely to be seriously injured
•    2x more likely to kill a front seat occupant by becoming a projectile 

A recent survey conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety found 40% of all survey participants stated they do not buckle up because there is no law requiring it and 60% of participants stated that a law would convince them to wear a seat belt in the backseat. 

The sooner this vital measure becomes law, the sooner lives can be saved, and injuries prevented.