Wearing A Seatbelt Could Get You This McDonald's Prize

Back in 1988, a University of Illinois study found that drivers wore their seatbelts more often when presented with the chance to win a prize or some kind of incentive, per the Chicago Tribune. Researchers secured billboard and radio advertisements letting drivers know that, if they buckled up, they could have the chance to win football tickets, cash, or fast food vouchers. More than 1,200 prizes, including coupons for McDonald's, were handed out to motorists that complied. The results of the effort found that rewarding drivers for buckling up caused more people to follow the law than simply cracking down on those who decided to forgo the protection altogether.

Fast forward to 2021 and law enforcement in Kentucky have now brought back this incentive to get drivers to wear their seatbelts more often. According to WTVQ, Kentucky state police have joined forces with McDonald's to bring back a voucher program for properly buckled-up people. The deal is sticking around through January 2 (a time of year when accidents happen more frequently due to inebriated drivers and winter road conditions) — if you live in certain parts of Kentucky, here's what you need to know.

WTVQ reports that anyone residing in Anderson, Fayette, Franklin, Scott, Shelby, Spencer, Woodford, Carroll, Gallatin, Henry, Oldham, Owen, or Trimble county in Kentucky might have a chance to score a voucher through January 2 for a free McDonald's breakfast combo meal as part of the ongoing "Operation CARE" (Crash Awareness and Reduction Effort) project. The offer applies to both drivers and passengers who are buckled up properly during random traffic stops over the next few days. Similar partnerships have also recently popped up across other parts of the state, and both McDonald's and Kentucky's Law Enforcement Agency feel optimistic that the initiative can keep drivers safer this New Year's weekend.

In fact, McDonald's has been trying to get you to wear your seatbelt for decades. According to My Parking Sign, the fast food giant has created road signs featuring the likeness of Ronald McDonald since the '80s reminding drivers to buckle up. It'll be interesting to see if this new Kentucky voucher giveaway works and is perhaps expanded in other parts of the country, and with any luck, more drivers will stay safe and buckled in going forward.