In which country was the world's first seat belt law put in place in 1970?

A seat belt (also known as a seatbelt or safety belt) is a vehicle safety device designed to secure the occupant of a vehicle against harmful movement that may result during a collision or a sudden stop. A seat belt functions to reduce the likelihood of death or serious injury in a traffic collision by reducing the force of secondary impacts with interior strike hazards, by keeping occupants positioned correctly for maximum effectiveness of the airbag (if equipped) and by preventing occupants being ejected from the vehicle in a crash or if the vehicle rolls over.

The world's first seat belt law was put in place in 1970, in the state of Victoria, Australia, making the wearing of a seat belt compulsory for drivers and front-seat passengers. This legislation was enacted after trialing Hemco seatbelts, designed by Desmond Hemphill (1926–2001), in the front seats of police vehicles, lowering the incidence of officer injury and death.

More Info: en.wikipedia.org

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12 Comments

Rob Farr

It says something about how we Aussies drive ... ha ha ..

klmilles

Even Max Rockatansky had seatbelts.

klmilles

Christopher J Voce, come to Miami, where people apparently drive according to the laws of their original countries.

Gary Chadwick

I remember in Tas when seat belt laws came in in the early 70s that it was compulsory only if the vechile had them installed, I thought it was in the late 60s but then that might have only been discussions around introducing the laws.

Christopher J Voce

Still the worlds worst drivers may be found within Victoria.

John Cameron

Like the rest of the world, Victoria Australia had a horrendous road toll. The seat belts immediately dramatically lowered the toll. It is a pity that some parts of the world were happy for their citizens to just keep dying in cars because it might not be constitutionally correct to save them by legislation.