All Wales Seatbelt Campaign results

2611 people in Wales put their lives at risk by choosing not to wear a seatbelt during this year’s All Wales Seatbelt Campaign.

The two-week campaign, led by Gwent Police, ran from 7th – 20th September and involved North Wales Police, South Wales Police and Dyfed Powys Police.

The campaign focused on education and enforcement. The educational phase, launched on August 25, gave emergency services the opportunity to raise awareness of the possible consequences of not wearing a seatbelt and the double in price of the fixed penalty notice from £30 to £60.

By force, the numbers of drivers and passengers issued with a fixed penalty notices for not wearing a seatbelts are:

• North Wales – 523
• Gwent – 1135
• South Wales – 518
• Dyfed-Powys – 435
• Overall, 27% (698) of those drivers and passengers were under the age of 25.

Chief Inspector Gary Ashton from the North Wales Police’s Roads Policing Unit said: “Failing to wear a seatbelt is still apparent on the roads of North Wales and it is disappointing to see that people are still choosing to risk their lives and the lives of others by not wearing a seatbelt, despite the awareness and education given to drivers and passengers.

“The overall number of people caught not wearing a seatbelt is lower than last year but no where near what we would like it to be.

“Seatbelts can be the difference between life and death, and sadly there have been a number of cases on the roads of North Wales where people may have survived very serious collisions if they had been wearing their seatbelt. These are needless and entirely avoidable deaths.

“As one of the Fatal 5 we constantly target and enforce non seatbelt wearing. This particular campaign may have come to an end but we will continue to take a pro-active approach all year round to educate motorists and enforce seatbelt laws.”

The Fatal 5 is a collective term that describes the five most significant contributory factors in death and serious injury collisions. These are: drink driving, speeding, not wearing a seatbelt, using a mobile phone whilst driving and dangerous driving.