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Honda Says "No" to
Seat Belts for Larger Passengers
June 27, 2000
Administrator
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
400 Seventh Street, SW
Washington, DC 20590
Re: Elizabeth Fisher's Petition for an amendment to SEC. 571.209 Standard No.
209, Seat Belt Assemblies.
Dear Administrator:
I am writing in support of Elizabeth Fisher's petition to amend Federal Regulation
49CFR571.209.
There are laws in 49 states
and the District of Columbia that require seat belt use, yet there is no federal
regulation that requires vehicle manufacturers to make seat belt assemblies
that fit people who weigh over 215 pounds. What good are stringent safety requirements
if we cannot fasten our seat belts?
I am over 350 lbs
and fit nicely in my '84 Chevy Wagon, BUT I have ridden in many newer model
vehicles, Chevy included, that I cannot fasten the seatbelt to ensure my safety
in a collision. Here in MI I can be stopped and ticketed if I am observed without
a seatbelt by an officer. How is this just when most vehicles will not fit around
me?
I am a mother of two children, aged 11 & 14. I require that they always buckle
their belts as I am ensured with their safety. Why are the manufacturers allowed
to put their bottom line above the safety of the public that they service? A
seatbelt extender is only around $30. Is it that much more money to make the
belts a foot or two longer to allow anyone who can fit into a vehicle to buckle
up? I fully agree with Ms. Fisher's petition and her statements.
On the NHTSA website there is an advertisement for the Buckle Up America Campaign.
How can you encourage rigorous enforcement of state and local seat-belt laws
when your own regulation seems to be based on exclusion of a significant portion
of our population?
Because fat is more prevalent in certain racial and ethnic populations, more
common in women than in men, and more common in older people than young, denying
fat people the protection of being included within the limits of federal seat
belt regulations disproportionately affects these disadvantaged groups. That's
discrimination.
Please amend 49CFR571.209 to provide a means for large people to buckle their
seat belts in vehicles they are riding in.
Sincerely,
Diane Saville