Orlando, FL -- (SBWIRE) -- 12/18/2012 -- The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recently released a report showing that seat belt use among U.S. drivers declined one percent in the past year. Overall seat belt use nationwide declined to 84 percent from 85 percent.

Floridainsurance.com, an agency providing Florida auto insurance quotes addressed the news in a statement. “This is troubling news for all drivers,” the company said. “Seat belt use saves lives and keeps insurance costs lower for everyone.” Despite the decline, drivers are still buckling up more often than in 2004, when the NHTSA recorded a recent low of 80 percent.

The state with the lowest recorded seat belt usage is the “Live Free or Die” state, New Hampshire, at 72.2 percent. New Hampshire has no law requiring adults to use seat belts. Two states, Hawaii and Washington, tied for the highest seat belt usage at 97.6 percent.

The District of Columbia joined fifteen states in achieving use rates above 90 percent: Delaware, Alabama, Minnesota, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Nevada, New Jersey, Texas, Maryland, Michigan, California, Oregon, Washington, and Hawaii. According to NHTSA estimates, an increase of just one percentage point in national seat belt usage results in an additional 220 lives saved per year.

The NHTSA's National Center for Statistics and Analysis estimates that seat belts saved 12,546 lives in the United States in 2010, down from 12,763 in 2009. If all occupants had buckled up in 2010, up to 3,341 additional lives could have been saved. In the five years from 2006 through 2010, more than 69,000 lives were saved by the use of seat belts.

“These statistics aptly demonstrate the reliable effectiveness of regular seat belt usage,” read the statement from Floridainsurance.com. “Thousands of lives are lost on our nation's roads each year. But many of those deaths can be prevented by the simple act of buckling up every time you get into a vehicle.”

To learn more or to get a Florida car insurance quote call 1.888.525.2210 visit http://www.floridainsurance.com