MORE than 300 people in Hampshire were stopped for not wearing a seatbelt as part of an international week of action.

Last week, offices from Hampshire and the Isle of Wight caught 312 people putting their lives at risk by not wearing a seatbelt when they took part in the week of action to reinforce the importance of wearing a seatbelt.

Of those stopped, 96 per cent were drivers and front seat passengers, and 11 of these were children.

While the figures show a drop in the number of people failing to put their seatbelts on - 376 people were caught in September - it still shows that the message isn't getting through to everyone.

The week of action marked the first Tispol (European Traffic Police Network) seatbelt enforcement campaign of the year, with police officers all over Europe conducting co-ordinated seatbelt checks.

Of those stopped in Hampshire, 84 per cent were male, 67 per cent were car drivers and 25 per cent were van drivers.

Child seats were also checked as part of the initiative and of the 61 checked, 34 (56 per cent) were incorrectly fitted.

Sergeant Rob Heard, Hampshire's road safety officer, said: "Over the last week we have been targeting those people who still fail to wear a seatbelt. We have been using a number of methods to do this, from unmarked car and bikes to roadside checks with a spotter.

"Figures from previous campaigns show that numbers are reducing which is positive to see and I am hoping the message is getting out there. In September 2015 we caught 376 and in March 2015, 392 were caught without a seatbelt on.

"Failing to wear a seatbelt is one of the fatal four offences which has been shown to be the main causes for death and serious injuries on our roads.

"By targeting these offences we know it will save lives and prevent injury. You are twice as likely to die in a collision if you are not wearing a seatbelt. Not wearing a seatbelt can be a fatal decision even on short, familiar journeys and at low speeds.

"Ninety-six per cent of the people we caught were front seat drivers or passengers. Research has shown that in a collision if you are unrestrained, you will hit the windscreen at a force of 30 to 60 times your own body weight. Please always wear your seatbelt, it's not worth the risk."

Failure to wear a seatbelt has been identified as one of the four key factors influencing the number of fatalities in road traffic collisions.

Just last year there were five fatalities involving people who were not wearing their seatbelt, bringing the total to 17 in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight since 2012.

If you fail to wear a seatbelt, you can be fined up to £500 or be offered an alternative to prosecution course if you have not completed one in the last three years.

The course is designed to educate drivers and passengers who have been stopped for seatbelt offences on the dangers of not wearing a seatbelt and how a seatbelt can save your life.

Police have issued the following top safety tips for fitting child car seats:

  • Fit your child seat properly, preferably with professional help
  • Make sure your seat is fitted securely and should rest firmly on the car seat with hardly any forwards or sideways movement
  • Each child seat will have a diagram on it on how to fit the seat properly
  • There will be a label that indicates the weight range for the child for which the seat is suitable
  • Keep the fitting instructions in the car – you may need them again
  • Look for the 'E' mark label on the seat, ECE Regulation 44.04 (or R 44.03) or to the new i-size regulation, R129.
  • Never fit a rear-facing child restraint in a seat with an active frontal airbag
  • Make sure the adult seat belt passes through all the correct guides
  • Never modify the seat or adult seat belt to make it fit
  • Don't let the seatbelt buckle be bent over or rest on the child seat frame
  • Re-check your seat before each journey