Coroner: Tractor seatbelt might have saved man

File photo / Daily Post

A coroner's report into the death of a Masterton man in a tractor accident claims any recommendation about seatbelts would fall on deaf ears.

Retired farmer Daniel Bensaude died in March after being run-over by his tractor while working on his farm.

Coroner Ian Smith said it was possible that the 73-year-old's life could have been saved had the tractor been fitted with a seatbelt.

He said there would come a time when seatbelts in tractors were mandatory but that he would not make that recommendation now, as he believed it would be ignored.

Mr Smith said he was endorsing current OSH recommendations, which encouraged farmers to fit safety belts and use them whenever practical.

- NEWSTALK ZB