In 2015, a total of 22,441 passenger vehicle occupants died in motor vehicle crashes in the United States, representing a 6.6% increase from 2014. Among those who died, 48% were unrestrained by a seat belt (or an age- and size-appropriate car seat or booster seat for younger children) at the time of the crash, whereas only 14% of 38,152 passenger vehicle occupants who survived a crash where at least one person died were unrestrained (1). Using a seat belt is one of the most effective ways to prevent serious injury or death among older children, teens, and adults in the event of a crash (2). Despite the effectiveness of seat belts, millions of persons in the United States continue to travel unrestrained (3).

Click It or Ticket is a national campaign coordinated annually by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to increase proper use of seat belts through safety education and strong law enforcement. Click It or Ticket takes place from May 22 to June 4, 2017. Law enforcement agencies across the nation will conduct intensive, high-visibility enforcement of seat belt laws, which has been demonstrated to be effective in increasing seat belt use (4). Enforcement is particularly encouraged from 6 p.m. until 5:59 a.m., because seat belt use is lower at night (1). Additional information and publication materials for the 2017 Click It or Ticket campaign are available from the NHTSA website at https://www.trafficsafetymarketing.gov/get-materials/seat-belts/click-it-or-ticket.

State-specific fact sheets on seat belt use, strategies to increase restraint use, and costs of crash deaths are available from CDC at https://www.cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety/seatbelts/states.html and https://www.cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety/statecosts/index.html. Additional information on preventing motor vehicle crash related injuries is available from CDC at https://www.cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety.