Car safety limitations !

When we consider buying a new car we are interested in how many safety stars apply to that make and model. Most new cars strive for the coveted " Five Star " safety level - but unfortunately this only applies to front seat passengers.

Those that ride in the back seat have not seen much of an increase in protection levels from decades past.

Those up front sit behind automatic air bags, buckled into their seats with seat belts that are fitted with load limiters to decrease rib fractures and other damage.
Rear seat passengers have to make do with seat belts that lack these safety features - and without even a thought of an air bag.

In one way it probably makes some sense. We are a nation that uses our car for mostly solo journeys - followed by car trips that contain only a driver and a front seat passenger. The number of journeys with all seats filled is minimal.

But surely the method of granting those safety stars could be improved to include rear seat safety - and surely if a sixth star applied to improvements in rear seat safety the car manufacturers would pursue it eagerly. At the moment - there is no incentive to spend money on rear seat improvements.

Maybe our lawmakers are not thinking outside the nine dots ! New laws mandate that children must ride in the back seat of cars - and teenage drivers - who have the worst ratio of road accidents to drivers - are the most likely to have their car full of fellow teenagers.

More thought on rear seat safety could pay dividends in lives saved !