It’s not the job of the government to protect people from themselves no matter how much they think they should. Enforcement of these laws is mostly to generate revenue and wastes resources that could be used to catch criminals and protect private property and contracts.
I strongly agree with government not infringing on personal liberties, however do we not have a societal impact here (other than just revenue generation)? If I am at fault for a collision where there is a seatbelt-preventable death, does that increase my liability? My insurance will pay more, and if I’m under-insured for such an event, are my assets at risk? How much does it then impact rates, if losses are higher? And the healthcare cost as well- if a severe injury occurs from not wearing the seatbelt, but there’s not adequate coverage, is the hospital/state on the hook for those medical payments (then covered by taxes)?
Again, I’m not for laws that protect me from me, but when others’ actions have an impact on me, then it’s more appropriate. My .02
But if we’re all sharing in the cost of health care, doesn’t enforcement of the seat belt law actually help the general public? Generally, accidents where occupants wear seat belts result in less significant injuries than would’ve been sustained had they not been restrained. In turn, that results in healthcare costs being more affordable for all than they would have been if the people were not buckled up, right?
It’s not the job of the government to protect people from themselves no matter how much they think they should. Enforcement of these laws is mostly to generate revenue and wastes resources that could be used to catch criminals and protect private property and contracts.
I strongly agree with government not infringing on personal liberties, however do we not have a societal impact here (other than just revenue generation)? If I am at fault for a collision where there is a seatbelt-preventable death, does that increase my liability? My insurance will pay more, and if I’m under-insured for such an event, are my assets at risk? How much does it then impact rates, if losses are higher? And the healthcare cost as well- if a severe injury occurs from not wearing the seatbelt, but there’s not adequate coverage, is the hospital/state on the hook for those medical payments (then covered by taxes)?
Again, I’m not for laws that protect me from me, but when others’ actions have an impact on me, then it’s more appropriate. My .02
But if we’re all sharing in the cost of health care, doesn’t enforcement of the seat belt law actually help the general public? Generally, accidents where occupants wear seat belts result in less significant injuries than would’ve been sustained had they not been restrained. In turn, that results in healthcare costs being more affordable for all than they would have been if the people were not buckled up, right?