At Purnell Body Shop, we see some very real results of vehicle accidents everyday. No one sees those results more frequently than our valued first responders. Having known dozens of police, fire and EMTs over the years, we can attest that these folks have seen wrecks that make it to the body shop. They have seen cars that are simply unrecognizable. However, due to the introduction of airbags as well as improvements in seatbelt technology, first responders are pulling living folks out of those vehicles more now than ever before.

In Maryland in 2013, the rate of observed seatbelt usage was around 91%. This means about 9% of folks, at any given time on the roads, were likely NOT wearing a seatbelt. However, of the folks who died as a result of an accident, 38% of those drivers and passengers were not wearing a seatbelt. One could conclude that the over-representation of that number is quite simply due to the fact that seatbelts do save lives. Literally.

We know that everyone has heard it a million times. We know that some look at seatbelt laws as a bit overboard in the grand scheme of things. The bottom line is they work. We ask everyone out there to drive and ride safely in 2015. Buckle Up!