Pedestrian safety is the theme of an injury prevention campaign by APIL after research found worrying gaps in road safety knowledge among consumers.

“The number of pedestrian fatalities has not improved over the last ten years which is why we’re taking this very seriously,” said Sam Elsby, president of APIL, which hosts Injury Prevention Week (17-21 August).

APIL commissioned research by YouGov, which revealed that most people who do not drive did not know that white lights indicate that a parked vehicle is about to start reversing.

“We also found that many parents are not confident about their children’s understanding of how to stay safe on the roads.  As children prepare to head back to school we’re asking for the support of MPs to help press the importance of the Green Cross Code in their constituencies,” said Sam.

The annual event has been extended from one day to an entire week for 2020.

“We started Injury Prevention Day because we found that the Government always focusses on the wrong thing when it looks at personal injury and legal reform,” he went on. “The arguments are never about preventing needless harm in the first place. Let’s be honest, the Government’s work is often about restricting rights to redress after the harm has been done.”

APIL is launching a series of awareness stories in the press and will highlight important safety messages to pedestrians on social media throughout the week. Personal injury lawyers are encouraged to support the initiative and even run their own safety campaigns to highlight Injury Prevention Week.

“At APIL we throw our energy into working towards a better world for injured people, but the simple fact is that the best thing would be for people not to be injured in the first place,” Sam explained. “That is why we are leading the way in the development of a national strategy for the prevention of needless injury. 

“Avoiding unnecessary harm and suffering is a cornerstone of APIL’s work, and always has been.”

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Notes to editors:

Read more and find resources at: https://apil.org.uk/injury-prevention-week

• APIL (Association of Personal Injury Lawyers) is a not-for-profit organisation whose members are dedicated to campaigning for improvements in the law to help people who are injured or become ill through no fault of their own.
• For more information contact APIL's communications manager Jane Hartwell on t: 0115 943 5416, e: [email protected], or press and communications officer Lizzy Freeman t: 0115 943 5431, e: [email protected].
• Visit the association's website at www.apil.org.uk.
• Follow @APIL on Twitter: www.twitter.com/APIL.