Uber issues alerts to remind riders to wear seat belts in backseat for safety

CHICAGO (WLS) — Uber is telling passengers they should put on their seatbelts, even within the backseat.

Forgetting a seatbelt is usually a harmful determination, and even within the again set you may nonetheless endure critical accidents or die. You are additionally placing your driver at excessive danger.

“In case you’re unbuckled, you will get every kind of accidents together with issues like head accidents, or different critical bodily accidents from impacting the entrance seat or any partitions between the entrance seat and the backseat,” mentioned Jessica Jermakin, vice chairman of auto analysis on the Insurance coverage Institute for Freeway Security. “And it will increase the probability of ejection.”

Ejection can happen even at slower speeds within the backseat and you could possibly even be placing the driving force in danger. Video from the Insurance coverage Institute for Freeway Security reveals how a backseat passenger can turn out to be a projectile.

“The motive force is 2 and a half occasions as more likely to die in a crash if there’s an unrestrained passenger behind them,” Jermakin mentioned.

Uber is now attempting to cut back all these dangers, utilizing a push alert to passengers.

After getting within the Uber and buckling up, the passenger will get a telephone alert. There may be additionally a sound on the driving force finish of the app as they swipe to start out the journey.

“That may activate the sound that can come from their telephone,” defined Kristin Smith, head of street security coverage for Uber. “We’ll give drivers a possibility to provide that suggestions and drivers as at all times, they will cancel a visit in the event that they really feel unsafe for any cause. However that is actually simply once more, attempting to induce the rider and never must be one thing that the driving force has to remind them however that simply the expertise is triggered at precisely the proper second to remind them to be buckling up.”

Research present that 90% of individuals say they buckle up within the entrance seat, however that solely about 80% of individuals say they buckle up in again. It may be simple to neglect but it surely’s nonetheless necessary to recollect and doubtlessly life-saving.