Citation

Jonsson E. J. Traffic Med. 1978; 6(3): 40-43.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1978, International Association for Accident and Traffic Medicine)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

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Abstract

In 1975, a law was introduced in Sweden requiring the use of seat-belts in the front seats of private cars. As a result, the proportion of belt users increased from 40% to 80%. At the same time, the risk of sustaining fatal, serious, or slight injuries seems to have decreased by 35%, 50% and 25% respectively. Thus, the seat-belt law may be said to have reduced the number of deaths by 65, the number of persons disabled by 150, and the number of cases of temporary injury by 2,450 in 1975 alone. Apart from the humanitarian gains, this corresponds to a yield of seven Swedish crowns for each Swedish crown invested; for 1975, the seat-belt law resulted in a material gain of 120 million Swedish crowns. At present, one-fifth of all drivers or front-seat passengers do not use their seat-belts. This means that 30 persons are killed, 70 are disabled and nearly 1,200 are injured quite unnecessarily in Sweden every year. Apart from the humanitarian losses, this represents an annual material loss of 65 million Swedish crowns.