New research has revealed the states with the lowest seat belt use on the road, with New Hampshire coming out on top. And that’s not good. The study by Bader Scott, injury lawyers in Atlanta, Georgia, analyzed data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to see which states had the lowest rate of seat belt use on average between 2015 and 2022.

It found that New Hampshire has the lowest rate of seat belt usage of any state on average, with 72.2%. Between the years studied, seat belt usage was at its lowest in the state in 2017, at just 67.6%, and highest in 2018, at 76.4%. New Hampshire has no seat belt law that covers drivers or passengers 18 and older. This shouldn’t be too surprising given that the state’s motto is “Live Free or Die.”

Massachusetts comes in second place on the list, with an average seat belt usage rate of 77.7%. Coming in third place is South Dakota, with an average of 78.8%.

In contrast, California has the highest average seat belt usage rate at 96.3%. New York was in the top half of the states with an average of 92.8%, which is good, but could be better. The nationwide compliance rate average from 2015 to 2022 was 90.1%.

Commenting on the findings, Seth Bader of Bader Scott said: “While in many states seat belt usage is on a steady rise since 2015, there’s an alarming difference between the bottom and top states. Considering cars are such an essential part of everyday life for many Americans, it’s also important to keep safe due to many factors, even though car safety has come leaps and bounds over the past few decades.”

Except for New Hampshire, all states and the District of Columbia require adult front-seat occupants to use seat belts. Adult rear-seat passengers are also covered by the laws in 33 states, including New York and the District of Columbia. Children are covered by separate laws.

Primary enforcement seat belt laws allow law enforcement officers to stop vehicles if a driver or passenger is not wearing a seat belt. Secondary enforcement laws require law enforcement to have some other reason for stopping a vehicle before citing a driver or passenger for not using a seat belt.

Thirty-four states, including New York and the District of Columbia, have primary enforcement of seat belt laws. States with primary enforcement generally have a higher percentage of compliance than states with only secondary seat belt laws.

Seat belts became available on some vehicles in the mid or late 1950s. The three-point belt, now common in all vehicles, became available in 1959. In 1961 Wisconsin was the first state to require seatbelts but didn’t require them to be worn.

In 1968, seat belts became mandated nationally. However, like Wisconsin, there was no requirement for them to be worn. In 1984, New York became the first state to mandate primary enforcement seat belt laws, but for passengers 16 years and older in the rear seat, there was no requirement to wear them.

On Nov. 1, 2020, New York mandated all persons in the vehicle to be always belted in all seats.

The laws are in place, now let’s obey them and get our compliance to 100%.