Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles
Florida Highway Patrol
Bilingual Teen Safety Belt Campaign
Project Summary
In 2006, Florida ranked second in the nation for the number of
drivers and passengers killed in auto accidents because they
weren’t wearing seat belts. While that statistic was troubling,
even more alarming for state legislators was the fact that nearly
one-fifth of those deaths involved drivers and passengers 15 to
20 years old. In 2009, the state enacted a primary safety belt
law to put some teeth into safety enforcement. However, many
teens were not aware of the new law or the legal consequences
of breaking it. The Florida Department of Highway Safety and
Motor Vehicles asked us to help them get the attention of this
difficult-to-reach audience.
A Campaign that “Clicked” with Teens
We took a look at past attempts to increase teen
seat belt use, and we noticed a reoccurring theme.
Consistently, scare tactics were used to coerce young
people into buckling up. We decided a better approach
was the creation and implementation of a campaign
that focused less on punishment and more on peer
pressure. Using attractive teen models on a runway
wearing safety belts over their stylish clothes, we urged
teens to “Make a Real Fashion Statement. Don’t Be
Caught Dead Without Your Seat Belt.” By playing to
the innate longing a young person has to fit in with their
peers, we were able to include a safety message that
was a natural corollary to our social messaging.
The Impact
Since our campaign debuted, the level of awareness
about Florida’s safety belt laws among drivers ages 16
to 20 has risen to over 90 percent. Florida Department
of Transportation statistics also show seat belt use
by teens has risen at least 4 percent since 2009. Our
campaign also led to peer-to-peer discussions in
schools throughout Florida, and the bilingual posters
and brochures we created and distributed to schools
have reached a Spanish-speaking audience the state
of Florida had previously had difficulty engaging. By
creating a behavior modification campaign that was
as much about adolescent engagement as education,
we’ve helped make driving in Florida safer for teens.
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