Every time you get in a car, it’s more than just your driving that could determine how safe you are if an accident were to occur – how you and your passengers are seated and ergonomically engage with the seat plays a major part in safety during the unfortunate instance of a collision. While all road users should understand the importance of buckling up in the name of safety, few motorists optimise their seating position to further safeguard them from harm during a collision.
“Many cars nowadays are made with such advanced safety features, but how we sit in a car is often our biggest safety precaution,” says Barend Smit, Marketing Director of MotorHappy, a supplier of motor management solutions and car insurance options.
Below are some of the riskiest ways to sit in a car:
Feet on dashboard
Sitting in the front passenger seat with feet on the dashboard can lead to severe injury if an accident were to occur. Airbags, which are standard in most modern cars, deploy at lightning speed which endangers the passenger’s entire body and can result in a fatal outcome. Drivers should ensure their passengers are correctly seated with their feet in the footwell with a seatbelt correctly fastened for maximum protection during unexpected situations.
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Passenger seat reclined
If you’re feeling a bit too restricted sitting in the passenger seat of a car, the temptation might be to lean back and relax by putting your feet up on the dashboard. But beware! If you recline that passenger seat while still wearing your seat belt, it could prove fatally dangerous. Instead of providing chest and lap protection, it moves dangerously close to both throat and abdomen areas; this puts not only neck but internal organs at major risk during an accident.
Wearing the seat belt under your arm
Incorrectly wearing a seatbelt can become equally as dangerous as not wearing one at all. If it’s not positioned properly, passengers run an increased risk of hitting the deploying airbag at 320 km/h and causing catastrophic damage due to your weaker rib cage instead of stronger collarbone protecting against impact. Always make sure that when buckling up for safety, you put it over your shoulder – every life is worth saving!
Third row seats
Sitting in the back can be riskier than you think! Despite being great for larger groups, third-row seats are often significantly less stable and closer to potential danger. In a rear-end collision, anyone sitting there could face greater risks of injury compared to those up front.
Riding with a child or dog on your lap
Riding with a beloved pet or child on your lap in the car can be more dangerous than you think. At high speeds, airbags inflate quickly and could result in serious injuries for your companion – if not death. That same force of impact that would protect an adult from physical harm could send them flying into you instead, potentially resulting in major bodily harm as well.
“Children should always be safely secured in the back seat, with the correct child’s seat for their weight and height. Pets are also safest if they’re wearing a harness that is buckled to the seatbelt or in a secured carrier,” advises Smit.
“The safest spot for adult passengers is usually the least comfortable spot: The middle of the back seat is the safest place in a car. (If you have three rows, it would be the middle seat in the middle row.) Adults in this seat are usually the furthest from the point of impact and they are insulated by the other passengers. However, this spot is ONLY the safest spot if the car is equipped with a secure seat belt for this seat.”
