Former Tata Sons chairman Cyrus Mistry died in a horrific and unfortunate road accident on Sunday (September 4) when the car he was traveling in collided with a divider. The Mercedes-Benz GLC SUV he was sitting in was being driven by a doctor in Maharashtra’s Palghar district as the vehicle along with 4 people, including 54-year-old Mistry, was traveling from Ahmedabad to Mumbai. According to preliminary police investigation, Cyrus Mistry and Jehangir Pandole were sitting in the back seat of the vehicle and were not wearing seat belts. Police said the accident occurred due to over speeding and an “error of judgment” by the driver. Both Mistry and Jahangir died in the accident, while both the people sitting in front wearing seat belts survived the accident.
Why is a rear seat belt necessary?
Passengers in the rear seats without seatbelts have nothing to keep them in their positions in the event of an accident. In the event of an accident, the rear passenger who is not wearing a seat belt is at risk of colliding with the backrest of the front seat. This can lead to whiplash injury, which often affects the vertebrae and in many cases cuts off the oxygen supply to the brain. In many cases, a rear passenger without a belt can hit the front seat, push the front passenger into the dashboard, or deploy an airbag, posing a fatal risk. It has been observed that in some cases, the rear passengers may fly out of the windscreen or hit the dashboard or steering wheel.
A video by the highly reputed Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) shows how the rear seat passengers are affected in case of an accident. According to the institute, 90 percent of people worldwide do not wear a safety belt, especially when traveling by taxi or ride-sharing service. Here is a video that highlights the importance of seat belts in the back seat.
How safe are the rear seat passengers?
Jessica Germakian, a senior research engineer at IIHS, said that for most adults, riding in the back seat is far safer than in the front, if only they are strapped. While people know the importance of wearing a seat belt in the front seat, there is still a denial of wearing a seat belt in the back seat. In the Indian context, people do not wear rear seat belts due to lack of awareness and enforcement.
In the event of an accident, the rear passenger without the seat belt can be pushed forward with severe force and the front passenger can also be injured or killed. This phenomenon is clearly demonstrated in the video by the crash test dummy. If the seat belt is not worn, a passenger can hit hard surfaces, even tossing the car at high speed if the rear door opens causing regrettable injuries to life.
*Note: We advise our readers to understand the importance of wearing a seat belt in the back seat.