One in four Belgians forget to buckle up in back seat

Seat belt use in the car has improved in Belgium in recent years, rising to 92.2% in the front seat, compared with 84.6% in 2012. In the back seat, however, a quarter of Belgian passengers do not wear a seat belt, according to a study by the Belgian Institute for Road Safety (IBSR).

The institute has therefore launched a new campaign under the motto 'Make it click!', to encourage more Belgians to buckle up, also in the back seat.

For the study, IBSR observed 120,000 people in cars at a total of 127 locations, keeping count of the number of drivers and passengers wearing a seat belt. The observations were made at different times of the week and day.

According to the results, seat belt use among drivers in Belgium is at 92.7%, an increase of 40% over the past 10 years. "Although there are still people who do not wear their seat belt, awareness campaigns, improved controls and seat belt reminders have still clearly had a positive effect," says IBSR.

The results for the back seat passengers are less positive, with only 74.4% buckled up. It is the first time that IBSR observed the percentage of seat belt uses among rear passengers.

The results also reveal a gender difference among front seat passengers, with 94.2% of the women wearing their seat belt, compared to 84.6% of men.

The IBSR campaign runs until the end of this year.