There is no information on any safety belt for cars that goes around the neck - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
February 16, 2023
A photograph which claims to show a concept design of car safety belts in the 1960s is being widely shared. In this design, the belt goes around the neck of the passengers. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Concept design of car safety belt in 1960s that goes around the neck.
Fact: Considering the chronology of evolution of the seat belts, there is no mention of any safety belt that goes around the neck. Volvo developed a modern three-point seat belt, which is in use now. After this successful intervention, it is highly unlikely that inventors tested a safety belt that goes around the neck. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
In the 1930s, cars used to have lap belts as a safety measure. These belts used to avoid passengers to fall out of the car. It is in 1955 a breakthrough came in, when two Americans named Roger W Griswold and Hugh DeHaven designed the first iteration of the 3-point seatbelt that we see in cars today.
The seat belt which we know now, the three-point seat belt, is developed in 1959, by Nils Bohlin, a Volvo engineer. This was a biggest breakthrough and has set the standard for seat belts. Back then, it was widely considered among the most cost-effective public health interventions. Although Volvo holds patent for this design, they made it available for all the manufactures to use.
After this, most of the car manufacturing companies used the three-point seat belts, as it proved to be most effective design. In other words, contrary to the claim, it is very unlikely that inventors tested a safety belt that goes around the neck after the successful intervention (3-point seatbelt).
Further, if we consider the chronology of evolution of the seat belts, there is no mention of any such design, which goes around the neck (here ,here & here). If any such intervention was indeed made, there would be information available about the design. However, we could not find any information about such design.
The concept shared in the viral post could be humorous take, inspired by a scene in 2008 comic film, The Onion Moive. Snopes, a fact-checking agency had earlier debunked the same photograph, stating that no such design was proposed, which goes around the neck.
To sum it up, there is no information on any safety belt for cars that goes around the neck.