How to Legally Wear a Seatbelt

Getting your kids to buckle up properly and stay tethered can be a battle of will. There are many reasons why children between the ages of 8 and 14 forget or don`t want to fasten their seatbelts. For many reasons why your children may protest seat belt use, we have tips to motivate them to buckle up. Utah – The Beehive State has had a primary seat belt law since 2015. Utah requires all occupants to wear seat belts. In addition, children under 8 years of age must be restrained with the appropriate car seat or booster seat. Of the 22,215 car occupants killed in 2019, 47% were not wearing seat belts. Tennessee – „The Volunteer State“ has a primary seat belt law that requires drivers to wear seat belts when the vehicle is in motion. Passengers in the front seat must wear properly fastened seat belts. Children under 18 years of age must wear safety restraint systems in each seat.

Seat belt laws are effective in reducing deaths from car accidents. [21] One study found that mandatory seat belts reduced road fatalities by 8% and serious road accidents by 9%. [22] Primary seat belt laws appear to be more effective than secondary legislation in reducing deaths. [23] [24] Maine – As of September 2007, „Pine Tree State“ has been one of the major seatbelt states. Maine requires drivers and passengers 18 years of age and older to wear seat belts. Additional legislation requires the use of appropriate child restraint systems in all vehicles. Would you like to see some examples of a bad belt fit? Georgia – „The State of Peach“ has a primary seat belt law that requires drivers and front-seat passengers 18 years of age and older to wear seat belts. Passengers between the ages of 8 and 17 must wear a seat belt on each seat of the vehicle. Child restraint laws apply to all passengers under the age of 8. The remaining 15 states assign a secondary app for buckling (meaning if you`re stopped for something else and aren`t wearing your seat belt, you`re likely to have more trouble for it). There is currently no seat belt law in New Hampshire.

The application of seat belts in the back seat also varies from state to state as a primary and secondary offense. Learn more about your state`s seat belt laws below. Federal authorities should require vehicles to be equipped with a visual screen warning the driver when passengers in the back are not wearing seat belts. You should also extend the audible warning required for the front seat. Seat belts saved about 14,955 lives in 2017 alone and could have saved another 2,549 people if they had worn their seat belts. Fastening your seatbelt isn`t a one-time conversation – it`s ongoing. Lead by example by always fastening your seat belt and remind your teens that buckling is the law. Kentucky – „The Bluegrass State“ resisted updating seat belt laws, despite the best efforts of former Gov. Steve Beshear.

Today, all passengers not covered by child restraint laws must wear seat belts. Kentucky allows those with a doctor`s letter stating medical conditions to lift restrictions. The state has a primary seat belt law and requires anyone wearing a seat belt to fit and fasten it properly. Find your state below to see what seat belt laws are currently in place and what penalties can be imposed if you are caught not wearing one. Children whose knees do not bend at the front edge of the vehicle seat are likely to bend until their knees bend and they are more comfortable. When this happens, the seat belt detaches from the hip bones and over the abdominal area. Children whose knees do not bend to the edge of the vehicle seat require a booster seat. Iowa – Passengers under the age of 6 must be restrained in an appropriate safety seat or booster seat when driving in Hawkeye State. Children between the ages of 6 and 11 must wear a seat belt or child restraint. Persons under the age of 18 must wear a seat belt.

Iowa is a primary seat belt state. Booster seats work by lifting the child so that the seat belt fits properly. The seat belt does all the work, the booster seat only helps to put the seat belt in the right place. The position of the lap belt is especially important and is often overlooked. It is important that the lap belt passes through the strong bones of the hip. In the event of an accident, you protect your bones from injury. If your child is not tall enough to use the seat belt alone, the lap belt will be on the abdomen instead of the hip bones, and in the event of an accident, the child could be seriously injured if the lap belt digs into the abdomen. If you don`t fasten your seat belt, you could be thrown into a quick-release front airbag.

Such violence could injure or even kill you. Learn more about airbag safety. Minnesota – The North Star State has primary seat belt laws that require all passengers and drivers to fasten their seat belts. Children must also wear appropriate child restraints and all restraint systems must be worn correctly. Minnesota offers the driver stiff penalties for a first offense, often in excess of $100. Alabama`s seat belt law has primary application. This only applies to front seat drivers who are 15 years of age or older. Children under the age of 15 must wear restraint protection appropriate to their age, weight and height. A ticket for your first offence carries a maximum fine of $25.

With a few exceptions, North Carolina law requires everyone in a car (including the back seat!) to be properly buckled up. For older children and adults, this means using a seat belt and wearing it properly. Officers can issue tickets for improperly fastened seat belts. If the ticket is for a child under the age of 16, the driver may have to pay up to $250! A person who has been involved in a car accident and has not worn a seat belt can be held liable for much greater damage than if they had worn a seat belt. In court, however, most states protect motorists from harm reduction in a lawsuit for not using seat belts, even if they broke the law by not wearing seat belts. Currently, seat belt damage can be reduced in 16 states: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida (see F.S.A. 316,614(10)), Iowa, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, West Virginia and Wisconsin. [20] Michigan – Drivers in the Great Lakes state must comply with the main seat belt law. Michigan requires passengers ages 8 to 15 to fasten their seat belts, regardless of where they drive. All drivers and passengers must wear seat belts. It`s been a long time since your toddlers switched from a booster seat to an adult seat belt, and now they`re teenagers.

Do you think it`s time to relax? Think again. The majority of young people involved in fatal accidents do not wear their seat belts. Washington — Washington State has a primary seat belt law that requires anyone over the age of 8 or over 4`9″ to buckle up. The state of Evergreen passed stricter seat belt laws in 2007, adding that children under 8 years of age or under 4`9″ must wear a safety restraint system or use a booster seat. They also require children under the age of 13 to get in the back seat when adequate restraint systems in the front seat are not an option. South Carolina – South Carolina has a primary seat belt law that requires every occupant of the vehicle to wear a seat belt. „The State of Palmetto“ also criticizes drivers for ensuring that every unlicensed passenger aged 17 or younger wears a seat belt. West Virginia – „The Mountain State“ has a primary seat belt law that requires all front seat occupants to fasten their seat belts. All rear passengers under the age of 18 must also wear a seat belt. Some children may pass the „seat belt fit test“ on their 8th birthday.

Others need more time to grow before the seat belt adjusts properly. If the seat belt does not fit properly, the child will still need a booster seat. If a child is 8 or 80 pounds old, they are allowed to drive in the car with only a seat belt (without booster seat). But just as we don`t automatically issue a driver`s license to all teens on their 16th birthday, we shouldn`t automatically stop using the booster seat at 8 or 80 pounds. Instead, it`s important to make sure your child can pass the „seat belt fit test.“ New Jersey – In New Jersey, passengers in the front seat who are not wearing their seat belts are charged with a felony. „The Garden State“ could charge those in the back seat with a secondary offense. Learning the importance of wearing a seat belt starts with a good role model – and that`s you. As a parent or caregiver, you have the biggest impact on your child`s seat belt safety. Research shows that children whose parents fasten their seatbelts are much more likely to buckle their seatbelts themselves. Ohio – Ohio is another state with secondary seat belt legislation. The Buckeye State requires drivers and passengers 15 years of age and older to wear seat belts. Passengers between the ages of 8 and 14 must wear their seat belts in the front or rear seats.

Children under 8 years of age must use an appropriate child restraint system. The risk of injury to underage passengers is significantly higher if seat belts are loosened and/or improperly positioned. Find out which seat belt is right for your child and why your kids may not be properly fastened. A study of part-time seat belt users who had recently received a citation for not wearing a seat belt found that an unlimited or 100-second acoustic reminder increased seat belt use by about one-third (Kidd & Singer, 2019).