Still 'too many' people in Rotorua not wearing seat belts

"Horrific" crash scenes and targeted ad campaigns have done nothing to change the attitudes of 899 people who were last year ticketed for not wearing a seatbelt.

And while the number of tickets has been decreasing over the past eight years, Rotorua police and paramedics say the number is still far too high.

Nearly 900 people were caught without their seatbelt on last year, a decrease of 56.7 per cent from the 2078 in 2009.

But St John Rotorua paramedic Mike France said while the numbers may have reduced, they were still being called out "far too often" to crashes where people hadn't used a seatbelt.

Mr France described the scenes as "pretty horrific", finding people with missing limbs, "massive injuries" partially ejected from the vehicle or "dead bodies scattered across the road".

"People live with the nightmares of arriving on a scene like that," he said.

"Sure it affects the people in the car and their whanau, but also the people who arrive on the scene, there is a ripple effect right through the community."

Mr France said it was important to make sure your mates in the back had their seatbelt on too.

"They're like a cannonball. We've seen the person in the front seat killed because the person behind them hit the back of their seat with so much force," he said.

"As a driver, look around at your mates and say, hey bro, put your seat belt on."

A Car Seat Initiative held by Rotorua police earlier this month found only 11 per cent of child car seats checked were fitted correctly.

"The biggest thing that gets me is when small children are unrestrained and have gone through the windscreen," Mr France said.

"Items in the car become a missile. That's instant death."

The driver of a car is responsible for ensuring all passengers under 15 are wearing a seatbelt.

Passengers 15 and over are responsible for putting seatbelts on themselves.

Mr France said it was typically adults though who were not wearing their seatbelts.

"People who should know better, but have always done it and never been caught.

"It should be second nature, you make the quick decision to make it click, even around town, just doing a quick job," he said.

"You don't have to be going fast to die, even at 50km/h I have seen people suffer fatal trauma or be left paralysed.

"You may be the best driver in the world, but there's always everyone else."

Rotorua police area prevention manager Inspector Stuart Nightingale said there were several reasons the numbers may have dropped off.

"I'd like to think that when you give enough visibility to an issue and talk about it enough, people start to listen," he said.

This includes targeted ad campaigns encouraging the use of seatbelts, run nationwide.

"But of course it's still too many."

Mr Nightingale said it did not matter how short the drive may be, a large number of injuries in car crashes were preventable by wearing a seatbelt.

"It's like riding a bike without putting on a helmet," he said.

"I have children who nag me before I've even left the driveway to make sure I have it on."

Often modern cars will beep at the driver and passenger if they haven't put their seatbelt on.

"It's a deterrent as well, because it can be really irritating," Mr Nightingale said.

Seatbelt laws in New Zealand
- If you sit in a seat with a seatbelt you must wear it.
- All children under 7 must be secured in an approved child restraint when travelling in cars or vans.
- It is advised any child 14 or under travels in the back seat.
- If you are 15 years or over and drive or ride in a vehicle without wearing a seatbelt you can be fined.
- If you are the driver you can be fined if you have a passenger aged under 15 riding in your vehicle without wearing a seatbelt or child restraint.
- New Zealand Transport Agency