Government launches new campaign to encourage young people to wear seat belts

A new campaign to remind young people to CLICK their seat belt in a bid to shift attitudes and save lives on roads across England and Wales has been officially launched by the Government.

According to national data, every week, four young people aged 17 to 29 are either killed or seriously injured on our roads when not wearing a seat belt.

The campaign highlighted that young men are more likely to not wear a seat belt – especially on short or well-known journeys.

In fact, in 2022, 30% of fatalities among 17 to 29-year-olds were unbelted.

To help combat this, alongside targeted advertising on roadside posters, radio and social media, CLICK will collaborate with several partners, including various county football associations and local clubs to promote ‘belting up’ when travelling to matchdays to keep themselves and their teammates safe.

Taxi and private hire vehicle companies, including Uber, are also supporting the campaign and looking to introduce direct reminders to passengers to wear their seat belt when making journeys in cabs.

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• Research finds majority of all fatal collisions include young male drivers in the UK

Roads Minister, Guy Opperman, said: “We know how important wearing a seat belt is, reducing the risk of death for drivers in a collision by 50%.

“This campaign is part of the government’s plan to make our roads even safer and aims to make clicking in a seat belt second nature to young men, who currently run the highest risk of death or serious injury – reminding them that a simple CLICK can save lives.”

RAC road safety spokesman, Rod Dennis, said: “To most people, it’s second nature to wear a seat belt, but every time someone forgets to click theirs into place, they’re putting themselves and other passengers at risk.

“Young male drivers are much more likely to be seriously injured or killed than any other age group because they haven’t buckled up. For this reason, we’re in full support of THINK!’s ‘CLICK’ campaign urging all car occupants to wear their belts in transit, but especially young male audiences for whom this message could literally save lives.”