Grim warning issued to anyone who puts their feet on car dashboard
Madison Burgess
Featured Image Credit: Getty Stock Image
An X-ray has shown the horrifying injuries of a car passenger who had their feet on the dashboard when the vehicle crashed.
Now, when you're not the one driving, and you've called shotgun in the front seat, it can be tempting to kick back and get comfy by resting your legs up high.
But if anything will convince you to never do that again, it's this.
Police officers in Wales released the X-ray image back in 2020 as a stark warning to others to keep their legs in the footwell, after the woman in question suffered life-changing injuries following the crash.
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One of her hip bones was completely broken off and protruding out of the skin, while she also had pelvic and femur fractures.
Police said she survived the accident but was badly injured because of the way she was sitting in the car, with her feet up on the dashboard.
As per Sky News, Sargent Ian Price of Dyfed-Powys Police in Wales, said on X at the time: "Here is an X-ray of horrific injuries sustained to the front seat passenger who had their feet on the dashboard at the time of a collision.
"If you see your passenger doing it stop driving and show them this."
In the UK, having your feet on the dashboard is not illegal, but it is extremely dangerous, and some drivers could be accused of allowing passengers to block their view.
The Highway Code outlines that 'windscreens and windows must be kept clean and free from obstructions to vision'.
While the Road Traffic Act adds that 'no person shall drive a motor vehicle on a road if he is in such a position that he cannot have a full view of the road and traffic ahead'.
Motorists who ignore the rules could face a £1,000 fine and three penalty points for driving with an obstructed view - and that's without even taking into account the safety concerns of sitting like that and what could happen in a crash.
There are a number of reasons why putting your feet on the dashboard can spell danger.
The first of these is airbag force, as they typically deploy within 20 to 50 milliseconds of a crash being detected, which leaves no time to move.
As per 1st Central Insurance, the blast will drive your legs upward, risking catastrophic injuries such as knees being forced into the face.
Shattered femurs, dislocated hips, and crushed pelvises are also more likely.
Finally, for your seatbelt to work correctly, it relies on you having correct posture with the seat and airbag, and feet on the dashboard disrupts this, reducing the protection it can give you in a crash.