by Katerina Nikolas

Created on: April 17, 2010

I have never lived in a country where seatbelts are not mandatory yet have never thought of it as an issue of force. To me it is bizarre that anyone would object to buckling up as it is just plain common sense to do so. I get annoyed when I stop for ancient people hitching a ride in the mountain by flagging the car down with their walking sticks, who then ignore my request to belt up, but hang on instead to the strap above the passenger door. After all by stopping for them their safety is now my responsibility and the easiest way for the police to make a few euros is to issue a fine for not wearing one.

Quite why the issue of wearing seatbelts in America is seen as an invasion of rights is beyond me. It is simply a safety issue designed to save lives. Maybe if Americans drove past road side icons on every bend which highlight each road fatality, it would bring the message home. This is not to say that every driver buckles up willingly and many only do it to prevent being fined, yet at the same time they wouldn’t let their child ride in the car unbuckled as they know it isn’t safe.

You can drive along believing you are the best driver on the road but that doesn’t prevent someone else with the exact same mindset driving into you. Flying through the windscreen does not necessarily kill you but it could leave you paralysed for life.

In a country which has so many other laws, what is one more when it is designed for your own protection? There is probably no more stubborn nation around than the Greeks who loathe being told what to do and disregard stupid laws which they didn’t want, but on the whole they abide by the seat belt law without complaining.

They’ve never taken to the helmet on motorcycle law at all though which is equally sensible, but prefer to drive along with their helmet over their arm. This is changing though as fines are actually being implemented and accidents rise daily. They know that a helmet won't protect their legs but will buckle up in a car without a protest.

To reach my local town I need to drive for an hour over a mountain with hair pin bends. The road is extremely dangerous and scares the life out of most people who aren’t local as it drops down to the sea. The instances of cars going over the edge in the last decade alone is too numerous to count. Seat belts have saved lives though with people emerging practically unscratched from cars which have been totally wrecked.

I really fail to understand why this is an issue at all as I have never lived anywhere where seat belts were not compulsory and have never heard it raised as an issue of ones rights being invaded except by Americans. One thing is for sure, if you were driving on the roads here you wouldn’t be arguing about your rights, but checking that the seat belt fastened properly on your hire car. Or maybe you just wouldn't travel here knowing that you will be forced to wear a seatbelt and have no way of winning an arguement with a foreign policeman.

Should people be forced to wear seatbelts? The Amercian arguement for and against can rage, but if you want to drive here indeed you should be forced to wear your seatbelt. Tourists are after all considered one of the most dangerous set of drivers on the road.

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