Lessons Learned:
Why Use Seat Belts?

by Frederick Clark, ARM
Vice President, Transportation Services

Regulations

“49 CFR 393.93(b)(1) Truck and truck tractors manufactured on or after January 1, 1965, and before July 1, 1971. Except as … 1971, must be equipped with a Type 1 or Type 2 seat belt assembly that conforms to Fed. M. Veh. Safety Std No. 209 … The standard goes on to require installation of seat belts in truck and truck tractors in years following 1971.

“49CFR 392.16 A commercial motor vehicle which has a seat belt assembly installed at the driver’s seat shall not be driven unless the driver has properly restrained himself/herself with the seat belt assembly.” First published from the July 3, 1970 Federal Register (35 FR 10860).

While these are good reasons to wear a seat belt, they’re not the best reasons. Several weeks ago I was talking to a safety director of a Midwest trucking company. The person asked if I had any “hard” statistics that illustrated the advantages of truck drivers wearing seat belts. Here’s one statistic I found: “Of the 2158 fatally injured workers who were either drivers or passengers in motor vehicles, 62% were not using any type of safety restraint.” (NIOSH publication No. 98-142, July 1998 (http://www.cdc.gov/niosh))

Does this answer the safety director’s specific question? Probably not! It is not specifically related to truck drivers. And it is not personalized.

Honestly, my first reaction to the question was, “is this still a problem?” This comes from someone who first addressed the seat belt issue in 1967 when the first added accessory on his 1962 Falcon -- well second, first being the thumb gripper on the steering wheel -- were seat belts. This is personally a hot issue with me since my mother and brother were thrown through the windshield of a 1959 VW. Fortunately they can still tell the story today. But the event made a lasting impression on me.

This reaction to the safety director’s question was for only an instant because the obvious response is: With statistics like those mentioned earlier, it is a problem in our industry. That’s when I began to relate my personal experience and observations over my 15 years as a Fleet Safety Director. In that time I investigated or participated in the investigation of over 5,000 truck accidents. Following are some observations regarding seat belt usage or lack thereof.

Accident #1
A cab over straight truck pulled from an interstate crossover into the fast lane just as a tractor trailer was passing. There was minimal damage to the straight truck -- the front bumper, front cab and grill assembly were removed, including the steering column. From the side view, the straight truck appeared to have very little damage. The seat belt lay unbuckled on the driver’s seat. The driver received fatal injuries as he followed the steering column into the side of the tractor trailer. There is no doubt that the seat belt would have protected the driver.

Accident #2
A cargo tank truck turned over on its right side at low speed (probably less than 25 mph). The cargo began to spill, and a small fire erupted. Several minutes later, a dentist and his daughter arrived on the scene. They observed there was little damage to the cab of the truck; however, the driver was unconscious on the passenger side of the cab. The seat belt was unused. The dentist wanted to get his daughter safely from the area before he attempted a rescue. He drove her 500 feet away and walked toward the scene. As he got close, the fire intensified, making rescue impossible. It was the dentist’s opinion, and I firmly agree, that if the seatbelt was in use the driver would have been conscious and had 15 minutes to get out of the vehicle.

Accident #3
A suicide car driver high on drugs was going south in the northbound lanes of I-45 and playing “chicken” with northbound tractor trailers. This driver contacted the left front wheel of a cab over tractor causing loss of steering control. The tractor trailer crossed the grass median and then entered the southbound lanes, contacting the left rear of another tractor trailer. This removed the left front corner of the cab over tractor and caused the driver to be drawn forward, held only by his seat belt. He saw the box trailer pass within inches of his face. He was, and still probably is today, an advocate for seatbelts.

Accident #4
John was driving his tractor trailer on a cold winter roadway at highway speeds when he was first sideswiped on the left and then on the right very violently. Apparently, snow and ice in their lane of travel affected the other two tractor trailers. John relates that the only way he was able to bring the tractor trailer to a safe stop was because the seat belt held him in place. He tells of being violently pulled right and left during the accident. Rather than holding onto the steering wheel for support, he was able to “brace” himself with the seat belt to maintain control. He was uninjured. One of the other drivers received fatal injuries and the other had major injuries. I’ve heard about this type of situation many times , but not as dramatically as this driver related his experience to me.

Accident #5
A team driven tractor trailer was involved in a rollover accident. The nature of the rollover caused the co-driver (passenger) section of the truck cab to be crushed. The only room to live was where the seat belt held the co-driver. This driver’s safety habit saved his life!

Are these stories a statistical validation for seat belt usage for commercial drivers? No! However they are examples to use when you tell your drivers THE SEAT BELT STORY.

Frederick Clark has a BS degree in Chemistry and over 30 years of experience in the safety, health and environmental field. He has gained expertise in many aspects of personal and fleet safety and loss control management. He serves the fleet safety needs and distribution-related needs of clients by providing training, assessments, risk analyses, and other loss prevention programs.

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