Estimated reading time: 5 minutes
Colorado Department of Transportation issued a news release August 30, 2023 saying, only 32% of pregnant Colorado women wear their seat belt correctly based on analysis of 1,712 prenatal seat belt checks.
They describe “correct” seat belt fit as:
- Lap belt placed low under the curve of the belly and resting on the hips.
- Shoulder belt to the side of the belly and diagonally across the center of the chest.
- Shoulder belt crossing the middle of the clavicle, resting on the shoulder.
Let us highlight a few things from the article:
“Motor vehicle collisions are a leading cause of fetal injury and death in the U.S., according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).”
and
“Seat belts are our first line of defense in a vehicle in the event of a crash,”
said Darrell Lingk, director of the Highway Safety Office at CDOT
Get your guide about safer driving practices for during pregnancy
But “only 32% of pregnant vehicle occupants were using seat belts correctly.” The study also says, “if all pregnant vehicle occupants wore their seat belt correctly, motor vehicle crash-related fetal loss could decline by more than 50%.”
Big questions when reading these statistics are:
- How exactly are the other 68% wearing it that is incorrect?
- And if wearing it correctly will decrease fetal loss by 50%, what is causing the other 50% to still be lost? Could it be, or some of it be, that “first line of defense”?
Lack of comfort is obviously an issue in pregnant women wearing the seat belt “correctly”. And maternal body shape can make it difficult to maintain correctness.
What they also seem to forget is that even low “under the curve” the “first line of defense” — aka the seat belt — can still impact the pregnancy during a crash. You think that’s not crossing part of the placenta? Or the baby’s head if the baby is head down in the pelvis?
Coming to light
What if no one wanted to admit the seat belt is an issue because then someone might be liable, especially if someone knew a long time ago and never said anything? Would the need for something better ever come to light?
If you look at studies and articles written about driving during pregnancy, the need has come to light. If you look at the numerous products trying to address the need, it has come to light.
Why has nothing been done about it?
Why have no standards been created for seat belt safety during pregnancy, whether for the seat belt itself or for after market positioners?
And why would they rather tell people not to use the pregnancy seat belt positioners including the one that is safe and crash tested congruent with FMVSS 208/209, the closest applicable standards that regulate the seat belt system?
Download our free PDF guide: Safer Driving During Pregnancy
Keeping it in the dark
It’s understandable in a sense that they didn’t want to say anything in early seat belt history. They were trying to get people using seat belts. They got to about 91.6% of people using the seat belt. Isn’t now a good time to look at improving the seat belt for all sizes and shapes and conditions? Not all of us fit the average male size it was designed for. And there are still few, if any in some cars, ways to accommodate varying sizes.
Remember seat belts were unregulated for 16 years between when factories first installed seat belts and the government created NHTSA and assigned them the task of creating safety standards. And car seats were unregulated for 9 years between when they were first being designed with safety in mind and when NHTSA created standards.
Now that one good, crash-tested device is available to address seat belt safety for pregnant women along with a bunch of cheap, plastic knockoffs, isn’t it time for NHTSA to create safety standards? Wouldn’t that be better than sweeping the concern of millions of pregnant moms under the rug, calling it good with the seat belt “as is” and discouraging looking for something to make driving during pregnancy more safe?
Unregulated does not equal unsafe. It is just unregulated because it’s innovative.
“Unregulated” solutions
The Colorado study sources Hudson Center for Prenatal Vehicle Safety for some information. Hudson Center for Prenatal Vehicle Safety says:
Many seat belt positioner advertisements claim that their product is crash tested. However, only one manufacturer provides any crash test information. … Even if the positioner was tested there is no standard for them to be tested against. … “Crash tested” is a relatively loose statement. Simply stating a product is crash tested does not mean that it will perform well in a crash. When a consumer sees that a car seat “meets FMVSS 213” the manufacturer is promising the consumer that the car seat will perform to a set of standards. A seat belt positioner that simply says “crash tested” does not necessarily promise safety.
The “only one” would be the Tummy Shield. Though they probably can’t say that because of “liability” or not wanting to point anyone to a quality product when they are trying to imply all are bad. (Most are.) As mentioned earlier Tummy Shield is crash tested congruent with FMVSS 208/209. This testing demonstrated the seat belt still works as intended and meets standards while using the Tummy Shield. Since NHTSA hasn’t written standards yet specifically for pregnancy seat belt positioners. those are the closest applicable standards.
Real world crash results indicate only safe outcomes for both mom and baby. As of this date, there have been no reported broken legs, no severed femoral arteries (including in a crash in which the pregnant women was hanging by the seat belt and Tummy Shield waiting for paramedics after a rollover), no placenta abruptions, no fetal head injuries, no fetal losses. No injury other than mild bruising on the leg where the seat belt was.
If you are sensing frustration, you are right. We are frustrated. We are frustrated by the lack of support by the very people who say they have a vested interest in children’s lives and safety. We just ask you read more on our site and think for yourself.
By Amie Durocher, Creative Director at Safe Ride 4 Kids and certified CPS Tech since 2004
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