Starting May 19, law enforcement across Oklahoma will be looking for seat belt violations.

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Oklahoma Highway Safety Office and Oklahoma law enforcement agencies urge drivers to buckle up ahead of the national Click It or Ticket seat belt safety campaign. The high-visibility enforcement effort, which coincides with Memorial Day, runs May 19 to June 1, 2025.

“Seat belt use should be an automatic habit for drivers and passengers alike,” said Oklahoma Highway Patrol Lt. Chris Arnall. “It’s not just a safe thing to do – it’s the law. During the Click It or Ticket campaign, we’ll be working with our fellow law enforcement officers across local and state lines to ensure the message gets out to drivers and passengers. Buckling up is the simplest thing a driver can do to limit injury or save a life during a crash. We see the results of not wearing a seat belt all the time. So often, it could have been prevented.”

While the national seat belt daytime use rate in 2023 was 91.9%, the 2024 Oklahoma seat belt observation study shows that overall seat belt usage is 86.4% statewide. Some Oklahoma counties are significantly lower than the statewide rate.

According to NHTSA, on average, a person not wearing a seat belt dies in a car crash every 47 minutes. Additionally, those who don’t want to buckle up may not understand they pose a danger to other people in the vehicle. An unrestrained person can become a projectile and crush other occupants during a crash, even if the other occupants are wearing their own seat belts.

“If the enforcement effort alerts people to the dangers of unrestrained driving, we’ll consider our mission to be a success,” said Lt. Arnall. “We are asking friends and family to remind each other to buckle up when they drive, and to consider changing their habits if they don’t. Help us spread this lifesaving message before one more friend or family member is killed as a result of this senseless inaction. Seat belts save lives, and everyone – front seat and back, child and adult – needs to remember to buckle up.”

For more information on seat belt safety, please visit oklahoma.gov/highwaysafety.