Report says about half of traffic deaths were unrestrained

(NBC) - The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that 50 percent of passenger vehicle occupants killed in 2021 were unrestrained.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is urging Americans to buckle up.

Ahead of the busy summer travel season.

According to a new report, the national use rate for seat belts was 91.6 percent in 2022.

In 2021, more than 26,000 occupants in passenger vehicles were killed.

About 50 percent of those were not wearing seat belts and 57 percent who were killed at night were unrestrained.

Those statistics are based on known seat belt use.

The agency says in 2017 alone, seat belts saved an estimated 14,955 lives.

The takeaway is, buckling up is the single most effective thing you can do to protect yourself in a car crash.