A road safety advert has been hailed the greatest ever made – after it attracted 6 million web hits, was watched in 129 countries and made the police cry.

The tear-jerking seatbelt film, which cost just £47,000 and was shot in two days, has become a global internet sensation.

It is currently the fifth-rated video on YouTube.

Made for the Sussex Safer Roads Partnership (SSRP), Embrace Life has proved so effective that organisations from 129 countries, including American traffic police, major companies, the United Nations and European schools, are buying the clip to promote road safety.

Neil Hopkins the communications manager of SSRP - which raised the ad's £47,000 budget from local police forces and fire brigades said: "From a really small start it's become a global monster. It's smashed all our expectations. We're handling licensing requests from state troopers in the US, big firms like Shell, talk shows, the French government, schools and road safety organisations.

“It's going really well and we've got lots of different countries talking to us at the moment about screening the advert. We've got a few contracts being written.”

Mr Hopkins said he was unsure of how much the SSRP could make from licensing fees but said the cost of the film should be recouped and anything afterwards – once other costs were deducted – would be ploughed back into road safety.For more details about the campaign and to view the film, visit www.SussexSaferRoads.gov.uk.