Are you old enough to remember the old seat belt message  "Clunk Click Every Trip”? I certainly am, but some people obviously haven't or they choose not to listen.

For some reason many people do not seem to want to wear a seat belt when travelling in a car. Apart from the glaringly obvious fact that wearing a seat belt can save your life, failing to wear one can seriously affect the amount of compensation you receive if you are injured in a road traffic accident.

The rules are very simple. If you do not wear a seat belt and are injured then your compensation will be reduced by:

• 25 % if your injuries would have been entirely avoided if you had worn a seat belt;
• 15% if a seat belt would have reduced your injuries
• 0% if the failure to wear a seat belt made no difference to the injuries you sustain.

Wear your seat belt at all times and, if you don't, make sure you use a solicitor who knows the law on seat belts as some insurance companies will argue that you should receive a bigger reduction in your compensation than the law provides.

Chris Macwilliam is an experienced personal injury specialist and is the partner who heads the firm's personal injury department. He is a member of the Law Society Personal Injury Panel and holds Senior Litigator status with the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL).