Roadwise States Louisiana Driving lessons Seat belts save lives Louisiana driving lesson · Vehicle Safety
Seat belts save lives A 3-minute lesson from the Louisiana course. Read the rules and examples, follow the handbook page references, and check your understanding before you move on.
Read time 3 minutes
Course unit Vehicle Safety
Checkpoint questions 6
Source pages 44, 45 Louisiana requires everyone in cars, vans and pickup trucks to buckle up. The three-point belt saves more lives than any other safety device because it keeps you in your seat, conscious, and able to control the car.
Know the rule
Louisiana's mandatory safety belt law requires all passengers in cars, vans and pickup trucks to be properly buckled.
Handbook p. 44 ↗ 50% How much wearing a safety belt reduces your risk of serious injury, and of death
Handbook p. 44 ↗ Know the rule
Wear the lap belt snugly across your hips, where strong hip bones absorb impact, and the shoulder strap across your chest. The shoulder belt shouldn't be quite as tight as the lap belt.
Handbook p. 44 ↗ Why buckle up: You aren't thrown from the car; survival is 3 to 4 times greater if you stay inside You're less likely to be knocked out, so you can escape fire or water You stay behind the wheel and in control after the first impact You aren't thrown around inside the car; serious injury and death drop 60% to 80% Handbook p. 44 ↗ Know the rule
If you're pregnant, wear both the lap and shoulder belt; protecting yourself protects your unborn child.
Handbook p. 45 ↗ People less likely to buckle up: Teens Commercial drivers Males in rural areas Pickup truck drivers People driving at night People who have been drinking Handbook p. 44 ↗ Belt facts: 80% of deaths happen in cars going less than 40 mph 75% of crashes happen within 25 miles of home You're 25 times more likely to be killed if thrown from the car Unbelted deaths have happened at speeds as low as 12 mph There's less than a one-half of one percent chance of being trapped in a burning or submerged car Impact at 10 mph equals a 200-pound bag of cement dropped from a first-story window Handbook p. 45 ↗ Know the rule
A seat belt is your best defense against a drunk driver.
Handbook p. 45 ↗ Put it into practice
You're driving two blocks to the store and think a belt isn't worth the bother. But 75% of crashes happen within 25 miles of home and 80% of deaths happen under 40 mph. Short, slow trips are exactly where people get hurt.
A useful reminder 'Better to be thrown clear' is a myth: staying inside makes you 3 to 4 times more likely to survive.
Check your understanding Read the question, decide on an answer, then open it to check the explanation. These are Roadwise study questions based on the source handbook.
Wearing a safety belt reduces your risk of serious injury and fatality by about: 50% 10% 25% 90% Answer: 50%
The handbook states safety belts reduce risk of serious injury and death by about 50%.
Handbook p. 44 ↗ How much more likely are you to survive a crash if you remain inside the vehicle rather than being thrown from it? Slightly more likely 3 to 4 times more likely 10 times more likely There is no difference Answer: 3 to 4 times more likely
Staying inside the vehicle during a crash makes survival 3 to 4 times more likely than being ejected.
Handbook p. 44 ↗ Where should the lap portion of a safety belt sit? Loosely across your stomach High across your upper abdomen Snugly across your hips Loose enough to slide freely Answer: Snugly across your hips
The lap belt should be snug across the hips, which can absorb more impact force than the abdomen.
Handbook p. 44 ↗ By keeping you from being thrown about inside the car, properly buckled belts reduce the chance of serious injury and death by about: 10% to 20% 90% to 100% 30% to 40% 60% to 80% Answer: 60% to 80%
The handbook says properly buckled belts keep occupants from being thrown about inside the car, reducing serious injury and death by 60% to 80%.
Handbook p. 45 ↗ If you are pregnant, the safest way to wear a safety belt is: Lap belt low on the hips, plus shoulder belt The shoulder belt alone, with no lap belt No belt at all to avoid pressure on the abdomen The lap belt placed high across the stomach Answer: Lap belt low on the hips, plus shoulder belt
Wearing both the lap and shoulder belt protects a pregnant driver and, by extension, her unborn child.
Handbook p. 45 ↗ Which group is identified as less likely to wear safety belts? Female drivers in cities Drivers on short daytime trips Parents driving with young children Teens and pickup truck drivers Answer: Teens and pickup truck drivers
The handbook identifies teens, commercial drivers, and pickup truck drivers, among others, as less likely to buckle up.
Handbook p. 44 ↗ Previous lesson Anatomy of a crash Next lesson Child passenger restraints About the source Roadwise’s Louisiana course uses the driver handbook edition supplied with this study pack. This lesson cites source pages 44, 45. The linked PDF is a third-party mirror of the handbook, rather than a government-hosted page.
Open the handbook source PDF · View the source edition
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