Nearly half of the people killed on U.S. roads in 2023 were not wearing seat belts. That year, 17,872 vehicles in fatal crashes involved unbelted occupants, according to a new analysis from Pegasus Legal Capital, LLC, a legal funding company in Florida that provides competitive, low-risk cash advances to personal injury plaintiffs.
Nationally, seat belt use remains around 92%. This means a small group of non-users accounts for a disproportionate share of deaths. Many of these crashes happen at night, involve young drivers or occur in states with weak seat belt laws.
About 57% of unrestrained fatalities now occur at night, up from around 51%. After 6 p.m., factors such as impairment, fatigue and low visibility combine to make seat belts less likely to be used.
Young adults age 16 to 24 accounted for 6,693 deaths in 2023 and remain a high-risk group. They drive fewer miles than older adults but show lower seat belt use and higher rates of speeding and impaired driving. The data show that this age group represents a disproportionate share of unbelted deaths. That group should remain a top priority for schools, colleges, employers and peer-based safety programs, according to the release from Pegasus Legal Capital.
Worse yet, back seat non-use now carries a 137% higher driver fatality risk in a crash. The physics are simple: An unrestrained person in the rear can strike the driver or front passenger with the force of a heavy object at speed. This can turn a survivable collision into a life-threatening event for everyone in the vehicle. The rising risk since the early 2020s highlights a major gap in rear-seat messaging and law coverage.
Thankfully, NYS vehicle and traffic law requires all people in the vehicle to wear seat belts, including rear-seat passengers. Drivers not only should insist that all rear passengers be belted before driving, but the driver and unbelted passengers can be fined.
In states with strong primary seat belt laws — NYS is one of them — reports indicate about 30% fewer unrestrained deaths than states with weaker or secondary laws. In states with weaker laws, unrestrained fatality rates are about 20% higher, even with similar roads and vehicles. This contrast highlights how enforcement rules, rear seat mandates, penalties and public awareness shape outcomes.
The Pegasus analysis also says seat belt non-use now costs an estimated $220 billion each year. That is up from about $190 billion only a few years ago. These costs include medical care, emergency response, legal costs, lost work and long-term disability. The impact spreads across taxpayers, insurers, employers and families.
A quote from Pegasus Legal Capital states: “Under established negligence principles, not using an available seat belt can count as contributory negligence in a personal injury claim. This may reduce or block recovery in states that follow comparative fault laws. The data shows a systematic exposure to preventable liability. This applies to both individual drivers, whose unrestrained passengers create foreseeable harm under duty of care standards, and to state governments that maintain weak enforcement systems. These states may fail to meet the reasonable safety standard required under traffic law.”
Bottom line, always buckle up!