Do you love your friends as much as cake? Safe driving campaign hits home

Do you care as much about your friends as you do about a fancy cake? That’s the question posed by Responsible Young Drivers Vlaanderen, which, together with Renault, has launched The Safety Cake campaign.

An intriguing study carried out by the Leuven-based iVOX market research firm shows that 87% of Belgian drivers drive much more carefully when they have food in the passenger seat. Delicately decorated patisserie stands out as being potentially damaged by too much jostling.

The Safety Cake campaign would like drivers to treat their loved ones with the same care as they would treat such a bakery purchase. “The idea started from the principle that we drive more careful when we transport food on the passenger seat, like, say, a pizza, some Chinese takeaway or a cake,” explained Joost Berends of creative agency mortierbrigade, which also worked on the campaign.

“The Safety Cake brings across a very clear message about our driving behaviour not being very logical, in a way that people can relate to. Because why wouldn’t you be just as careful with your passengers as with the cake sitting next to you?”

The campaign website – in English, Dutch and French – shows what happens to a lovely little cake when the car careens around turns or stops short. It also provides a “recipe for safe driving”, including to slow down when taking bends, avoid sudden breaking, slow down for speed bumps and adjust your speed depending on the conditions.

“With the hashtag #TreatYourFriendsLikeACake, mortierbrigade invites motorists to treat their friends like a cake – that is with care.”