Scottish car accidents and seatbelt law

Anyone not wearing a seatbelt who is involved in a car accident in Scotland is likely to suffer more severe personal injury than someone who is. These days, it is hard to believe that this stark and logical truth was in question.

In fact, it was only in 1983 that all drivers and front seat passengers in Scotland and the UK were legally obliged to wear seatbelts. Even more surprisingly, it was not until 1991 that it became compulsory for adult rear seat passengers to wear seat belts.

The advantages of wearing a seatbelt are manifold. Take the example of one Australian study into the efficacy of seatbelts in saving lives in car accidents. It found that while non-seatbelt wearing people accounted for only 4% of car occupants, they accounted for 22% of all car accident deaths.

Not only will wearing a seatbelt reduce your risk of death, it will, naturally, reduce your chances of sustaining serious personal injury.

Numerous studies have shown that wearing a seatbelt greatly reduces the likelihood of you becoming unconscious during a car accident. This means that if, following a crash, you and your vehicle are in danger from water or fire-related hazards, if you are wearing a seatbelt you are far more likely to be able to prevent death by drowning or burning.

Furthermore, the wearing of seatbelts by rear seat passengers, greatly increases the personal safety of front seat occupants in car accidents. This is because rear seat passengers are far less likely to be thrown forward by the force of impact, a phenomenon which used to be a major cause of car accident death in both Scotland and the wider UK.

Who is exempt from wearing a seatbelt in Scotland and the UK?
The truth is that it is advisable for everyone to wear a seatbelt, however, there are some situations where a seatbelt is not a legal requirement.

These are the exemptions:

• Some delivery people. For example, milk float drivers.
• Anyone who is reversing.
• On-duty taxi drivers.
• Drivers of private hire vehicles, but only when carrying a passenger.
• Emergency vehicle workers (in exceptional circumstances)
• People with a medical exemption certificate. For example, pregnant women.

Child car seats in Scotland and the wider UK
In 2006 new laws were introduced pertaining to the safety of child car passengers and child car seats.

Under the terms of the new laws, until a child reaches 4ft 5in or the age of 12 a child seat is compulsory.

Exemptions to this law apply only in cases where a child is over three, there is no car seat, and the journey is considered an absolute necessity.

The exemption also applies if the child is over three but there is only room for two car seats.

Failure to comply with these child car seat laws not only, in the event of a car accident, risks the safety of children, but also can be punished with a fine of up to £500.

Making a no win, no fee car crash claim
If you or a member of your family have suffered personal injury as a result of another road user's actions, you may be entitled to claim compensation.

Here at YouClaim we are proud to be among the UK's leading experts in achieving personal injury compensation for people who have suffered road accidents.

Our no win, no fee solicitors are among the very best in the business and are all regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.

Win or lose, we guarantee first that you will never have to pay anyone a penny and second that we will never take a cut, meaning you get to keep 100% compensation.

If you would like to take that first step towards claiming car accident compensation, you can fill out an online claim form, request a call back or talk to a legal advisor using e-chat.

Alternatively if you would like to talk to someone and set the ball rolling now, call 0800 10 757 95.