Which is why I can't see how you're surprised. Seatbelts are the perfect example - in my experience, a lot of experienced drivers don't bother, or at least didn't bother in my country until the fear of getting ticketed for it started to feel real. And I'm convinced that the moment this law would disappear, a significant chunk of drivers would stop bothering with seatbelts.
What I am surprised at is the fact that the parent literally says "I don't believe you" regarding something that I experience myself all the time.
It's like they internalized that doing so is not only rare -which it might be in their country- but just not at all possible!!
> Seatbelts are the perfect example - in my experience, a lot of experienced drivers don't bother
See that's quite my point. I don't doubt that people might not use the seatbelt where you live. But if you told me you "don't believe" that the vast majority of people use it here when I see it with my own eyes every day... Then I'd be indeed very surprised.
(As a side note seatbelt usage here in Switzerland is reported to be ~94% by the European transport safety council)
I think this is a cultural thing. In the UK, I would say more people automatically wear a seatbelt than for example Italy. I had an Italian friend who was in a crash where the car flipped but luckily his time in the UK ingrained in him that he should wear a seatbelt, even while riding in the back. On the other hand, he now uses this story to try to change the behaviour of his Italian compatriots who he says very often do not wear seatbelts while in the back of a car.
I just checked the stats for seatbelt use in the United States. Interesting, in most states it’s over 90% to 97%, but in New Hampshire it’s only 70%. New Hampshire (I always liked its Live Free or Die motto) has no law requiring seat belt use. See https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/Publication/8124...
