Fasten up or face penalties

Around 47,000 tickets were issued to motorists last year for failure to wear seatbelts, a senior official yesterday said.

Brigadier Mohammad Saif Al Zafein, Director of the Dubai Traffic Police Department, said only 50 per cent of motorists wear seatbelts.

He said: "The violation continues despite the number of tickets Dubai Police issued last year."

Dubai Police yesterday said drivers who allow children under the age of 10 to sit in the front seat of a vehicle will now be fined Dh100 and four black points will be registered on their licences.

If a motorist incurs more than 12 black points on his licence, it will be cancelled. Earlier, the fine for allowing children in the front seat was only Dh100. Motorists were not slapped with black points.

The Dubai Traffic Police Department is also proposing that wearing seatbelts while seated in the back be made compulsory. Studies have the shown that passengers are safer sitting in the back if they have seatbelts on.

The most dangerous situation is when parents put their children on their laps while driving. If an accident occurs, the driver cannot take the right action and the child becomes the first victim of that accident.

He asked mothers who carry children to sit in the backseat and wear a seatbelt.

He said 27 people died last year in turn accidents where vehicles flipped over and 87 were killed in collisions. Experts said most of the victims were not wearing seatbelts.

They emphasised that the situation could have been different if they were wearing seatbelts.

Al Zafein said the violation poses extreme danger for the driver in case of an accident. He said scientific research has proved that a driver's speed is the same as the car he is driving.

However, he does not realise that until the car starts slowing down.

If the slow down is gradual, the speed of his body will decrease gradually. However, if the slowdown is sudden, his body might hit parts of the car or he might get thrown out of the vehicle.

He pointed out that seatbelts do not prevent accidents, but they reduce casualties.

Ahmad Hamza, a UAE national government employee, said the decision to fine drivers for allowing children under the age of 10 to sit in the front seat will be in the interest of everyone.

"I think the four black points are a good way to stop violators," says Hamza.

"Because if it was only a financial fine, drivers will not care much and most of them will have no objection to paying it, but four black points on the licence will make a big difference."