Photo: Volvo Trucks
A recent study conducted by Sweden’s National Society for Road Safety (NTF) has revealed that about half of all European truck drivers choose not to use their safety belts. The survey is based on observation of more than 700 truck drivers and interviews with more than 200 of them between 2011 and 2013.
The study also shows that only five percent of all truck drivers involved in fatal accidents were wearing their safety belts and that at least 50 percent of drivers who lost their lives while behind the wheel would have survived if they had been belted in.
Most drivers that have been interviewed by the NTF said they used safety belts while driving a car, but only half of them did so while driving their truck. The most common reasons for not wearing a seat belt was that it is too difficult or time-consuming to put on and take off the safety belt.
In response to the survey, Volvo Trucks has issued a statement in which it encourages both haulage companies and drivers to use the safety belt.
“Bearing in mind that the safety belt can spell the difference between life and death, these are not particularly credible excuses. At Volvo Trucks we invest considerable resources in the development of accident-prevention systems, but as long as the human factor plays such a big role it will never be possible to entirely eliminate the risk of road accidents,” said Carl Johan Almqvist, traffic & product safety director at Volvo Trucks. “I would therefore encourage both haulage firms and drivers to do what they can to improve safety. The simplest measure of all is naturally to use the single most important safety feature on board – the safety belt.”
Most drivers that have been interviewed by the NTF said they used safety belts while driving a car, but only half of them did so while driving their truck. The most common reasons for not wearing a seat belt was that it is too difficult or time-consuming to put on and take off the safety belt.
In response to the survey, Volvo Trucks has issued a statement in which it encourages both haulage companies and drivers to use the safety belt.
“Bearing in mind that the safety belt can spell the difference between life and death, these are not particularly credible excuses. At Volvo Trucks we invest considerable resources in the development of accident-prevention systems, but as long as the human factor plays such a big role it will never be possible to entirely eliminate the risk of road accidents,” said Carl Johan Almqvist, traffic & product safety director at Volvo Trucks. “I would therefore encourage both haulage firms and drivers to do what they can to improve safety. The simplest measure of all is naturally to use the single most important safety feature on board – the safety belt.”
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