Seat belt injury
compensation claims

Have you suffered a seatbelt injury in a road accident? We can help.

Seatbelts save lives, but in a road accident or near collision, wearing a seatbelt can still cause lasting injuries. Injuries can range from minor bruising and whiplash, to shoulder injuries, broken ribs and serious trauma.

If your life, or the life of a loved one, has been affected by a seatbelt injury, we can help. You can make a No Win, No Fee road injury compensation claim with the help and support of a specialist road accident solicitor.

Essential points when making a seat belt injury claim

• You can claim for a seatbelt injury if you were involved in a road accident, or in a vehicle that was forced to brake suddenly to avoid a collision.
• You may still be entitled to compensation, even if you believe you were partly at fault for the collision.
• You can proceed with a claim, even if the other party didn't have insurance or you don't have their contact details.
• You can still claim even if you weren't wearing a seat belt properly, but your compensation could be reduced.
• You must start your claim within 3 years from when the injury occurred.
• Your compensation is based on how serious your injury is, along with your financial losses and expenses. Check our compensation calculator to see how much you could claim.
• You can make a no win, no fee claim.

With nearly 75,000 car occupant injuries every year, you are not alone

In 2023, there were 749 car occupant fatalities and 72,155 casualties (gov.uk).

In 2021, the Department of Transport reported that 94.8% of all drivers wore a seatbelt, but 23% of car occupant fatalities were not wearing a seatbelt at the time of their accident.

The law states that unless you have a medical exemption certificate, you must wear a fitted seatbelt. This law applies whether you are the driver or a passenger (over the age of 12) in a car, taxi or van.

If you decide to make a seatbelt injury claim, your road accident solicitor will take you through every step of the claims process. Your solicitor will be with you until you win your claim and get the compensation you need to move forward.

What if the driver was uninsured or untraceable?

If the driver responsible for the injury is either uninsured or untraceable, a claim can be pursued through the Motor Insurers' Bureau (MIB).

The MIB is an independent that pays road accident compensation to the victims of uninsured or untraced (unidentified) drivers.

How much compensation can I claim for a seat belt injury?

The amount of compensation you can claim for your seat belt injury depends on:

• the seriousness of your injury,
• the impact of your injury on your daily life and ability to work,
• any direct financial losses or expenses resulting from your injury.

General damages are awarded for pain, suffering and loss of amenity (PSLA). Awards for general damages are set by the Judicial College (judiciary.uk) and published in their guidelines for personal injury awards.

Special damages are awarded to compensate you for any costs or losses you've incurred or might incur as a result of your accident. These costs might include loss of wages, commission and any other income, damage to your car, or any other out of pocket expenses.

Special damages may also be awarded for medical treatments or procedures that you might need to treat your seatbelt injury, including pain medication and psychological support.

Read more:

A complete list of recoverable losses in a personal injury claim

How is compensation calculated if I have multiple injuries?

Average seat belt injury compensation payouts

The following seat belt injury payouts refer to the Guidelines for the Assessment of General Damages in Personal Injury Cases, 17th Edition by the Judicial College (oup.com).

These tables are used by solicitors or by the courts as a starting point when calculating your compensation.

Please note: these average figures represent general damages only, and do not include any element of special damages (e.g. lost wages).

Chest injuries

Neck injury

Shoulder injury

Whiplash

Psychological harm after a road accident

The shock of an accident on the road can leave lasting emotional scars, long after the physical injuries have healed.

According to our 2025 Road Injury Claimant Survey, 32.47% of injured road users suffered a psychological injury, 78.53% of these alongside a physical injury.

Injuries caused by seat belts during an accident can, for example, result in a paradoxical phobia of both the injury and not using the seatbelt. More generally maxophobia (fear of driving or being a passenger) is common.

Your solicitor will help to ensure you recieve suitable compensation for the diagnosed psychological harm you have suffered, to support your recovery and provide funding for therapies that may not be accessible on the NHS your area.

Our compensation calculator can estimate your compensation for psychological injuries. Or you can call us on 0800 376 1001 to speak to a specialist advisor.

Am I entitled to make a seat belt injury claim?

You can start a claim for a seat belt injury, if:

• you were injured in the last 3 years, and;
• someone else was to blame, and;
• they owed you a duty of care.

Use our injury claim calculator to find out if you can claim. Or you can call 0800 376 1001 to speak to a specialist advisor. Find out in minutes if you have a claim.

Is a claim still possible if I am partly liable?

Ascertaining who is liable for an accident is not always straightforward and can often involve blame on both sides.

In our 2025 Road Injury Claimant Survey, 5.24% of injured road users said they either were unsure of which party was responsible, or believed they were partially responsible for their injuries.

When fault on both sides caused a claimant's injuries, this is called 'contributory negligence'. In these situations, compensation may still be payable on the basis of a split liability agreement.

Read more:

Can I claim if I feel I was partly responsible for my accident?

How long do I have to claim seat belt injury compensation?

An injury claim will usually need to be made within 3 years of the date or your accident or injury.

For injured children, a claim can be started by a parent or guardian at any time before they turn 18. Thereafter, the injured individual has until their 21st birthday to make a claim on their own.

Typical seatbelt injuries

Wearing seatbelt clearly helps to prevent injuries in the event of a road traffic accident. However, a seatbelt can also cause injuries in a collision, and it may be possible to bring a road traffic accident compensation claim for those injuries.

For example, a high impact collision between a car and a larger vehicle, such as a truck, may force the seatbelt to tighten across the chest, causing bruising and burns. In some situations, the sternum or ribs may be fractured. In serious cases, a chest fracture could cause a lung to collapse.

Whiplash injuries may also be sustained when the upper is restrained by the seatbelt while the head is thrown forwards and backwards by the force of the collision. This action causes damage to the muscles, ligaments and nerves of the neck.

Although wearing a seatbelt in a high-speed collision can prevent severe and fatal injury, the force of the crash may still result in fractures to the cervical spine.

What if I wasn't wearing a seatbelt?

If you have been injured in a road traffic accident that was the fault of another driver, your injury claim would be against that negligent driver, whether you were wearing a seatbelt or not.

However, a court may consider that your injuries may have been less serious if you had been wearing a seatbelt, and may reduce the amount of compensation awarded. Typically, this is around a 25% deduction for the 'contributory negligence'.

Read more about compensation for a road accident without a seatbelt here.

Seatbelt failures

Although it is rare for seatbelts to fail, it may be possible to bring a defective product claim if it can be proved that the seatbelt was faulty and that the injuries would have been less severe had the seatbelt not failed.

Your solicitor would bring a claim for the defective seatbelt against the car manufacturer under product liability laws. An engineer's report might be required to prove the case.

The claims process depends on the circumstances of your seatbelt injury

The claim process for a seat belt injury will vary depending on the circumstances. Click the icons below to learn more.

Road accidents Passenger injuries Other accidents

Sources

Author:
Gaynor Haliday, Legal researcher

About the author

Gaynor Haliday is an experienced legal researcher and published author. She has had numerous articles published in the press and is a legal industry commentator.