MUMBAI: Within a span of less than a month, two high-profile deaths, one of Cyrus Mistry on Mumbai-Ahmedabad highway and that of Maratha leader Vinayak Mete on Pune-Expressway, show that they died on the spot despite having seated at the rear, considered the safest position in case of any front-end collision. A survey by Local Circles, an online platform, suggested that around 70% of the people seated in the rear do not use seat belts at all, some of them despite knowing that rear belts do exist and can effectively reduce injuries as well as fatalities.
Surprisingly in both these mishaps, those who were seated at the front sustained comparatively lesser injuries despite the front-end impact of collision as they had worn their seat belts. According to experts, seat belts virtually negate the gravity or speed at which the passenger can oscillate between the two seats or ends of the car at the time of the high-impact collision. Also the airbags operate on time to further eliminate the remaining force of the impact thus reducing the intensity of the injuries.
The World Health Organization (WHO), in a report released earlier this year, had also emphasised that wearing safety belts in the rear seat can reduce the risk of being killed and injured by 25% and 75%, respectively. Unfortunately, most people while buying a car ensure that personal safety equipment are in place and yet while using the vehicle, seldom ensure that they and the co-passengers are using it properly.
A LocalCircles survey has brought to fore the fact that 7 out of 10 passengers while riding on the rear seat of a vehicle never wear the safety belt. In contrast, 26% out of over 10,500 respondents shared that they always wear the seat belt in the rear seats of the vehicle, while 4% of the respondents stated that they never travel in the rear seats. The survey received 10,598 responses from citizens located in 274 districts of India. 61% respondents were men while 39% respondents were women. 47%respondents were from tier 1, 39% from tier 2 and 14% respondents were from tier 3, 4 and rural districts. All participants were validated citizens who registered on the platform.
Automobile experts state that in the event of a crash, an unbuckled rear passenger is more likely to collide with the front seat’s backrest. “Whiplash is a type of injury that affects the vertebrae and, in many cases, cuts off oxygen to the brain. In many circumstances, unbelted rear passengers can crash with the front seat, driving the front passenger into the dashboard or triggering the airbag, posing a catastrophic risk. Depending on the severity of the accident, the rear passengers may fly out of the windscreen or collide with the dashboard or steering wheel. With unbelted rear-seat passengers, the risk of mortality for belted front-seat travelers increased approximately five-fold,” they said. So, for the safety of all car occupants, the use of rear seat belts should be advocated, they suggest.
“In summary, with 70% of citizens in the survey admitting that they never wear a seat belt, it is clear that most Indians think of rear seat belts as useless frills in a car. The need of the hour is for Central Government and State Governments to create awareness both amongst traffic police and citizens and subsequently conduct enforcement drives such that an increasing number of people start complying,” the survey recommends.
“The in-built speed limit of all such premium cars is normally higher than other normal cars. Hence, avoiding temptation to drive above 100 speed at any point of time even on wide open roads is the best practice. Looking at the damage made on the engine front, I think the vehicle was well above the speed limit. We also need to work on infrastructure, especially our National highways given their uneven patches, poorly designed speed breakers and straying of animals due to no fencing” said automobile expert Ravi Chandarana, CEO of KwikFix Auto.
“During the time of crash at such a high speed the person behind can sometimes be thrown at a force in multiples of gravity. Thus, his weight at the time of impact goes beyond some thousands of KGs. If the front passenger is wearing a seatbelt and the rear passenger is not, during the time of crash the front passenger is likely to be severely injured or killed due to the rear passenger falling with the weight of an elephant,” commented another expert on his social media account.
