The RCMP is focused on improving seatbelt use among drivers and passengers in vehicles this summer and will be handing out $175 tickets if they see someone not buckling up.

Craik RCMP Constable Kam Hay said the number one reason for injuries in a collision is not wearing a seatbelt. He said seatbelt use among motorists driving in towns around this area is pretty bad and this needs to change.

“Seatbelts are really important to me,” said Hay, who has been on the force for 10 years with detachments in Craik and Wynard and also with Lanigan Traffic Services. “I’ve been to a lot of collisions and the chances of survival are amazing if you stay in that vehicle without being thrown out.”

Hay said a $175 ticket is going to be handed out to drivers found not wearing a seatbelt or not wearing a seatbelt properly as well as any passengers in a vehicle not buckling up. He said if there are any passengers under the age of 16 who are not wearing a seatbelt the driver is going to get the ticket and multiple tickets can be issued at the same time if more than one person in the vehicle is in violation of the law.

“Vehicles are designed nowadays with a survival space,” he said. “Everything is designed to protect occupants of the vehicle. If a person is wearing a seatbelt they can stay in that survival space, which adds to their survival chances in a collision.”

A recent two-day traffic blitz in the province sponsored by SGI and involving multiple police agencies resulted in a total of 412 tickets being issued. Of that total, 95 were for seatbelt violations.

Kelly Brinkworth, manager of media relations for SGI, said in more than one-third of all traffic fatalities in the province, the person killed was not wearing a seatbelt. She said in 2012, improper or non-seatbelt use contributed to 47 deaths and 274 injuries.

“It’s quite crazy to think that around 100 tickets for non-seatbelt use are issued every month,” said Brinkworth. “It’s such a simple thing to do. It doesn’t prevent a collision, but it does reduce the risk of being injured or killed in one.”

According to RCMP statistics, Saskatchewan has the second highest seatbelt usage in Canada at over 90 per cent, but in rural areas this drops to below 60 per cent.

Hay said the excuse he often hears from motorists caught not wearing a seatbelt is that if their vehicle goes into the water or if it catches on fire they could become trapped if they are wearing a seatbelt.

“If you do go into the water and you’re not wearing a seatbelt you’ll probably get knocked out and won’t be able to get out of the vehicle, whereas if you are wearing a seatbelt you’ll remain conscious and be able to get out,” he said. “I have never come across a scene where someone was severely injured from wearing a seatbelt.”