More than 20 people were killed in traffic accidents in the first eight months of this year because they were not wearing seatbelts prompting a safety campaign recommending that all occupants of vehicles buckle up.

"Buckle Up Dubai" is the message for motorists from the International Association of Human Values (IAHV) who initiated their autumn campaign by unveiling the seat belt convincer to the public.

According to statistics, police issued 3,407 fines to motorists who did not wear seatbelts last year, which comprised 0.29 per cent of the total traffic offences last year. The fine for not wearing seatbelts is Dh100 and three black points are slapped on the driving licence.

Statistics also revealed that 17 people were killed in 2004 for not wearing seatbelts while 20 were killed in 2005. Fifty per cent of accident fatalities were because occupants were not wearing seatbelts.

"The driver has the additional responsibility of ensuring that all co-passengers are wearing seatbelts. It's just as if every driver is a pilot who orders all passengers to wear their safety belts before take off," said Brigadier Mohammad Saeed Al Merri, Deputy Director of Dubai Police's Community Service Department at the launch of the campaign.

Sponsored by the Emirates Driving Institute (EDI), the seatbelt convincer will demonstrate to motorists and passengers the physical shock of being involved in a car crash and will be available for the public to experience at Centrepoint at the Mall of the Emirates on Saturday from 7pm and 9pm, and other major shopping malls.

"The community needs to understand the dangers of driving without using the belts provided in every vehicle," said Salah Al Marzouqi, Deputy Director of Traffic at the Roads and Transport Authority.

He said when rear seat passengers are not belted, they can cause the death of the front seat passengers during collisions. So the cause of the fatality is not the accident, but the fact that the safety belt was not used by all the passengers.