Citation

McCormack L. Proc. Australas. Road Safety Res. Policing Educ. Conf. 2002; 6(2): 175-177.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2002, copyright holder varies, Publisher Monash University)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

In 2001 in New Zealand, at least 29 people were killed whose lives could have been saved if they had used the seat belts available to them. Two were children. The current national average for wearing rates for rear seat wearing and child restraint are substantially below New Zealand's National Road Safety Plan targets. An increase in safety behaviour that is the wearing of safety belts is highly likely to benefit ACC in terms of a reduction in the number and cost of injuries. In 1999 the Injury Prevention Division of ACC developed a Community Safety Belt programme to provide communities with a model for implementing community based safety belt projects. The programme is now active throughout the country. A recent external review of the programme showed that the programme was successful overall in increasing wearing rates. This paper outlines the development of the ACC Community Safety Belt programme.