They are the same. Basically to protect a driver if he/she gets in an accident with an unbelted driver or unhelmeted bike rider. The statistics show that this can be more injurious and/or deadlier.

I think to revocation of such laws (seat belt or helmet) should only be done if they include indemnities to others for injuries in accidents.

Seatbelt laws should be in place for minors, but as adults we should be able to decide what is safe for ourselves. I wear my seat belt on the highway only, I’m not afraid of a $10 ticket. I am well aware of the dangers, I was in a car accident, we hit a telephone pole at 80mph. The driver survived only because he was NOT wearing a seat belt. If he had it on he would have been smashed beyond belief. I don’t need the government to protect me from myself.

What is the big deal about buckling up? It takes two seconds and it is a proven live saver. My thought on this is that once the car is rolling I am no longer in control of my fate. I can put on a seat belt before I push the accelerator and I can drive as safely as possible but I can’t control what the guy behind me is going to do. If the seat belt is the difference between life or death I pick a wrinkled shirt and life.
I feel more strongly about helmets being worn on motorcyclists. I don’t even see a reason to talk about it. Bare head, solid pavement. Why would you even question the law on this one?

Tina, I will gladly get rid of seat belt and motorcycle helmet laws for adults only under certain circumstances. First, if a non-restrained or helmeted driver or passenger is injured, they cannot receive any State or federal medical or disability benefits arising from the injury. Second, they are not allowed to file for bankruptcy to avoid paying any medical expenses. Third, insurers have the right to deny coverage to anyone not wearing restraints or helmets at the time of the accident. Fourth, hospitals are not required to provide treatment to any non-restrained or non-helmeted adult if they are unable to pay for their treatment. Bottom line, do what you want, as long as I don’t become responsible for one red cent of your treatment or needs because you can’t work.

I wear my seat belt and I also wear a helmet while on my motorcycle. It’s the law. I would still do both law or not. That would be my personal choice. I do feel that it is not the governments place to protect you. I think that children should be protected under seat belt laws. If an adult chooses not to protect themselves, that should be their right. The same cop that will write a ticket for a seat belt violation will also throw his cigarette out of the car which is also breaking a law. If they are going to give tickets for not wearing seat belts, they should be ticketing those that throw trash out their car window. That would include cigarette butts. That will never happen.

oI have an opinion and it will be quite different from others. I buckle up every time I get in the car and before I start the engine. However, I unbuckle while driving along water. If through my error or someone else’s error my vehicle goes in the water and turns upside down, I don’t want the fun of trying to unbuckle while upside down.

How many times do cars that are uphill from a lake go in the water and people drown? Often in the summer, and little ones can’t unbuckle from their seats. If the car goes in and sinks, there are a lot mote problems that are caused by their being buckled in than if they were not.

Now to motorcyclists. They are a strange breed. I don’t care if they wear a helmet or not. I know one could have benefited by wearing one. I was travelling within the speed limit. A cyclist couldn’t pass because of oncoming traffic. When he did, he pulled in front of me and slowed to a stop. I got out and he threw a punch. He missed, and got a chop to the neck that knocked him out plus a knee to the groin while he was falling.

I got in my car and left him and his bike laying where they ended up. A following motorist and passengers saw the whole thing. They wrote my license plate number down. They called the cops. Cops called the ambulance. Nos it gets funny. A cop came to my house and asked me to tell him what happened. I said, I won’t discuss it. He replied, you know you can be charged with leaving the scene of an accident. I replied, I left the scene of a fist fight, it was no accident, now remove yourself from my property or I will remove you. The cop left. I never heard from anybody after that.

I don’t care if motorcyclists wear helmits or brivers wear seat belts. Neither has anything to do with safety, but to collect money for fines.

DonPat, we share some of the same thoughts, however where does it start and stop. Everyone that smokes, does drugs, drinks alcohol, drives fast, ect. Cost taxpayers down the line somewhere. We all pay for peoples mistakes as a society like it or not. I would think that the seat belt and helmet issue would be a small percentage of what we spend on other causes. I do agree with your comment.

I do wear my seatbelt, but I think the laws are just to generate revenue. I really question whether cops should be spending their days trying to catch people without their seatbelts. Surely there are more pressing law and order issues they could be pursuing.

johnh: You are soooooooo cool. I want to be just like you. It takes a real man to knee someone in the groin.

Tina, I find your story about someone surviving an 80 MPH collision with a pole while not wearing a seatbelt completely bogus. Give us a date and place of the accident so we have a way of verifying your claim…

There are exceptions where not wearing a seatbelt might have helped, but the odds are way against it.

I agree that you shouldn’t wear a seatbelt if you don’t want to. I also agree that you should not be able to receive any government paid healthcare if you get in an accident. And the government should then require that insurance companies give seperate rates for those that do and those that don’t, since the don’ts are guaranteed to have higher rates.