Buckle up! It’s National Seat Belt Day
2024-11-14
November 14 is National Seat Belt Day, commemorating the invention of the three-point safety belt that’s found in every new car today. Modern vehicles are full of advanced, high-tech safety and driver assistance features that can help protect you in a crash or assist you in avoiding a crash altogether – but buckling your seat belt is still a simple, effective, and crucial way to stay safe on the road.
“The seat belt is the most essential safety feature that we have,” says Regina Carto, Vice President, Global Product Safety, Systems and Certification at General Motors. “It can be the difference between life and death. It’s just a click, but it can save your life.”
Of course, a seat belt only works if you use it. That’s why GM offers features that encourage drivers and passengers to buckle up, every time they ride in a vehicle.
“Buckle to Drive” is a feature standard on most 2024 and 2025 GM models. When activated, this feature can prevent the driver from shifting out of Park for 20 seconds or until their seat belt is buckled; on many models, if a front-seat passenger is present, their belt must also be buckled before the driver can shift out of Park.
“Buckle to Drive keeps that habitual behavior going, so that seat belt usage becomes so automatic, you don’t even think about it,” Carto says.
Buckle to Drive also works hand-in-hand with GM’s Teen Driver technology, which lets parents designate one vehicle key to activate this safety feature designed to help protect young drivers. In many GM vehicles, when Teen Driver is active, Buckle to Drive automatically turns on.Seat belts are just as important for rear-seat passengers, but many folks neglect to buckle up when they climb in the back seats. Rear Seat Belt Reminder, available on many GM vehicles, is designed to display an icon on the instrument cluster to show which rear-seat passengers are buckled and which are not – including those in the third row, on equipped vehicles. If a rear-seat passenger unbuckles while you’re driving, you’ll see a red X icon in the display and hear a safety chime. It’s a simple but powerful tool to help make sure everyone is buckled on every ride. “No matter where in the vehicle occupants are sitting, you can determine whether they have their seat belt on,” Carto said.
The humble seat belt isn’t just a safety feature on its own – it's a team player, helping your car’s airbags do their job. “If you’re not properly positioned in the seat, the airbags have a harder time protecting you,” Carto says. “You have the best chance for survival if you are belted in properly.”
Keeping drivers and passengers safe is a calling for Carto. “What I love about safety is that it’s meaningful,” she says. “We’re doing work that benefits humanity. I’m very proud of our team and the work that we’re doing, making meaningful progress toward zero crashes.”
That focus on safety is a theme in the Carto family. “I have a son who’s a resident orthopedic surgeon,” she says. “He’s seen enough car crash victims to know, based on the injuries, whether they were wearing a seat belt or not. He told me, ‘Mom, it makes such a difference.’”
November 14 is National Seat Belt Day, commemorating the invention of the three-point safety belt that’s found in every new car today. Modern vehicles are full of advanced, high-tech safety and driver assistance features that can help protect you in a crash or assist you in avoiding a crash altogether – but buckling your seat belt is still a simple, effective, and crucial way to stay safe on the road.
“The seat belt is the most essential safety feature that we have,” says Regina Carto, Vice President, Global Product Safety, Systems and Certification at General Motors. “It can be the difference between life and death. It’s just a click, but it can save your life.”
Of course, a seat belt only works if you use it. That’s why GM offers features that encourage drivers and passengers to buckle up, every time they ride in a vehicle.
“Buckle to Drive” is a feature standard on most 2024 and 2025 GM models. When activated, this feature can prevent the driver from shifting out of Park for 20 seconds or until their seat belt is buckled; on many models, if a front-seat passenger is present, their belt must also be buckled before the driver can shift out of Park.
“Buckle to Drive keeps that habitual behavior going, so that seat belt usage becomes so automatic, you don’t even think about it,” Carto says.
Buckle to Drive also works hand-in-hand with GM’s Teen Driver technology, which lets parents designate one vehicle key to activate this safety feature designed to help protect young drivers. In many GM vehicles, when Teen Driver is active, Buckle to Drive automatically turns on.
Seat belts are just as important for rear-seat passengers, but many folks neglect to buckle up when they climb in the back seats. Rear Seat Belt Reminder, available on many GM vehicles, is designed to display an icon on the instrument cluster to show which rear-seat passengers are buckled and which are not – including those in the third row, on equipped vehicles. If a rear-seat passenger unbuckles while you’re driving, you’ll see a red X icon in the display and hear a safety chime. It’s a simple but powerful tool to help make sure everyone is buckled on every ride. “No matter where in the vehicle occupants are sitting, you can determine whether they have their seat belt on,” Carto said.
The humble seat belt isn’t just a safety feature on its own – it's a team player, helping your car’s airbags do their job. “If you’re not properly positioned in the seat, the airbags have a harder time protecting you,” Carto says. “You have the best chance for survival if you are belted in properly.”
Keeping drivers and passengers safe is a calling for Carto. “What I love about safety is that it’s meaningful,” she says. “We’re doing work that benefits humanity. I’m very proud of our team and the work that we’re doing, making meaningful progress toward zero crashes.”
That focus on safety is a theme in the Carto family. “I have a son who’s a resident orthopedic surgeon,” she says. “He’s seen enough car crash victims to know, based on the injuries, whether they were wearing a seat belt or not. He told me, ‘Mom, it makes such a difference.’”
