Miley Cyrus apologizes for not wearing seat belt

Billy Ray Cyrus, a country music singer and father of acting and singing sensation Miley Cyrus who plays Hannah Montana in the hit Disney series, apologized on Wednesday for being filmed in the back seat of a car with his daughter Miley without wearing seat belts.

The apology was made after Consumer Reports magazine scolded Miley, a tween role model, for setting the wrong example to her fans by not wearing a seat belt in the back seat of a Range Rover in a scene of her new hit movie, Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert Tour.

“We got caught up in the moment of filming, and we made a mistake and forgot to buckle our seatbelts,” Billy Ray Cyrus was quoted by People as saying. ”Seatbelt safety is extremely important,” he added.

According to Consumer Reports, Cyrus and his 15-year-old star daughter were filmed riding in a Range Rover on the way to rehearsal for the concert tour and both were not wearing seat belts.

"It seems to us that Miley, her father, and Disney had a perfect opportunity to help influence teens and counteract—rather than encourage—this trend," Yonkers-based Consumer Reports noted in a blog posting Monday.

The magazine further said that they are concerned because, according to the latest data from National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, in about 55 percent of passenger vehicle fatalities in 2006 the occupants were not buckling up. The rate of fatalities in the 13- to 15-year-old age group is even worse, where the percentage climbs to 65 percent, the magazine added.

Don Mays, the director of product safety at Consumers Union that publishes Consumer Reports, said Wednesday, "We applaud the Cyrus family for recognizing that wearing seat belts in rear seats is essential."

Miley’s Walt Disney 3-D movie has proven to be a major blockbuster, topping movie box offices. The movie was released earlier this month, and has taken in more than $50 million in less than two weeks.

Born on 23 November 1992 in Franklin, Tennessee, Miley Cyrus is the oldest daughter of country music star Billy Ray Cyrus, who topped the charts in 1992 with "Achy Breaky Heart." She became a TV star at the age of 13 as the title character in the Disney Channel series Hannah Montana. In December, Miley was ranked No. 17 in Forbes' list of Top Twenty Earners under 25, with an annual earning of $3.5 million.