During Police Scotland’s 24 hour Seatbelt Day of Action initiative on Wednesday/Thursday, officers throughout the country focused on ensuring that vehicle occupants were wearing their seatbelts. 378 offences were detected and those caught were issued with a fixed penalty ticket, which attracts a £100 fine.
This initiative is part of Police Scotland’s commitment to reducing road casualties and is also part of a wider European initiative to highlight the absolute need to wear a seatbelt whilst travelling in a vehicle.
A female driver was stopped in Arbroath when it was observed she was not wearing her seatbelt and it was found that her children were also unrestrained. Officers then discovered she was a provisional licence holder and did not have L-plates displayed or a qualified accompanying driver.
Also in Fife, a lorry driver was stopped for not wearing his seatbelt and officers discovered that the vehicle was being driven without a valid policy of insurance.
Inspector Grant Edward from Police Scotland said: “Wearing seatbelts saves lives. If you are involved in a collision wearing one will reduce the risk of serious or fatal injury by 50%. In addition many of the other life saving features in a vehicle such as Airbags are designed around the occupants wearing their seatbelts. So it is vitally important that everyone who is travelling in a vehicle wears their seatbelts otherwise the effectiveness of these life-saving devices is severely reduced.
“It is very disappointing to see so many motorists caught not wearing their seatbelt during the initiative and I’m sure they will be feeling the impact of the £100 fine.
“More importantly they have placed themselves at greater risk of injury and I would urge everyone to consider the implications of not wearing a seatbelt. Officers across Scotland will continue to ensure that everyone is adhering to legislation and wearing their seatbelts as part of our on-going commitment to keeping people safe on Scotland’s roads.”
John graduated from Telford College in 2010 with an HNC in Practical Journalism and since then he worked for the North Edinburgh News, The Southern Reporter, the Irish News Review and The Edinburgh Reporter. In addition he has been published in the Edinburgh Evening News and the Hibernian FC Programme.
