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When did seat belts become mandatory?
My partner nags me because I sometimes forget to put my seat belt on until my Honda Fit starts yelling at me. It got us discussing how our grandparents never had to wear seat belts, so I was wondering—when did seat belts become mandatory?
Shannon Fitzgerald · Updated on
Reviewed by Shannon Martin, Licensed Insurance Agent.
We might have to side with your partner on this one—not only can your seat belt save your life, but those in a car’s front row are legally required to wear seat belts in most states.
Seat belts became mandatory on January 1, 1968, when Title 49 of the U.S. Code, Chapter 301, Motor Safety Standard made seat belts in vehicles a federal law. Note: this law did NOT mandate that passengers had to wear seat belts. Rather, it only required vehicle makers to equip new cars with them.
It wasn’t until January 1, 1984, that New York enacted the first state law requiring passengers to wear seat belts. Initially, this was only required for front-seat passengers, whereas today (in New York, at least) it applies to everyone in the car.
Though seat belts are legally mandatory for all front seat passengers in 49 states and the District of Columbia,
New Hampshire seat belt laws
currently don’t require seat belts to be worn by passengers over 18. Additionally, those in the back row are only required by law to wear seat belts in 32 of the 50 states plus D.C. You’d therefore have to move to New Hampshire to get away with not wearing a seat belt as the driver. However, we strongly discourage you from doing so.
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- Gregory R.
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Jerry partners with more than 50 insurance companies, but our content is independently researched, written, and fact-checked by our team of editors and agents. We aren’t paid for reviews or other content.
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