Belting Up

I never liked using a seat belt when truck driving.

It seem a lot of others feel the same.

"Many truck drivers seem to think they are better off being thrown out of a truck than being restrained within it during a crash. Nothing could be further from the truth. In reality, you're four times more likely to die if thrown from a vehicle," says Debbie Stearns, Programme Manager for ACC.

The 2006 survey by Research NZ, involving nearly 1,500 heavy goods vehicles weighing more than 3.5 tonnes, found truck driver seatbelt wearing rates of only 50 per cent (slightly higher in inner city driving and slightly lower on inter-city trips).

"That result is of real concern. And frankly it's not just about the truck drivers. Them not wearing seatbelts puts the rest of us at greater risk when they have an accident. They are more likely to lose control of the vehicle and crash into someone else."


I've been to a lot of truck crashes, some fatal, and I wear mine all the time now.

I can only think of one where a belt would have made no difference, and that was a head on into a bank, nothing would have saved the driver.

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