Seatbelt Evaluation

Overview

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), a total of 23,551 occupants of passenger vehicles were killed in 2017. Of those, 43% (10,076 occupants) were unrestrained. Almost every state has enacted legislation requiring occupants of varying ages to wear seatbelts.

If an individual is injured in a collision and was not wearing a seatbelt, some states allow for lowered liability due to “contributory negligence.” The occupant is deemed to have materially contributed to his or her own injuries. Through careful inspection of the involved vehicle restraint systems and download of crash data stored in a supported vehicle's Event Data Recorder (EDR), we can determine if the occupants were or were not wearing their seatbelts.

VMAR also analyzes restraint systems to determine if a manufacturer's defect led to seatbelt failure. We have seen this occur in rollover accidents where one or more occupants were ejected from the vehicle and it was alleged they were not wearing seatbelts, when in fact the restraint system failed due to a manufacturer's defect. 

When You Need to Know . . .

  • Were the vehicle occupants wearing their seatbelts at the time of the accident?
  • Did the seatbelt fail at the time of the accident?
  • Was there a manufacturer's defect that caused a seatbelt to fail?

Detail of Seatbelt Evaluation Investigation and Analysis Service

  • File review (including examination of police report and vehicle repair records)
  • Phone interviews of involved parties (when assigned)
  • Examination and documentation of restraint system components including webbing, buckles, latch plates, D-rings, retractors, and anchors
  • Download of data from the vehicle's Electronic Data Recorder and interpretation of data (when the vehicle is supported)
  • Thorough photo documentation of inspection and investigation process
  • Establish proper chain of custody and evidence storage (when needed)
  • Coordination and file documentation
  • Preparation of a fully detailed written report

Our 21 Day
Guarantee

In the world of claims adjusting we know that you usually have only a 30-day window in which to determine the merits of a claim. That's why we promise to handle your assignment and get the completed report into your hands within 21 calendar days.

And we back our promise with this guarantee:

If we do not get your assignment completed within 21 calendar days, then we cut your cost in half.

VMAR-21-Days-Money-Back-Guarantee