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Background

Every driver who is behind the wheel is responsible for the safety of their passengers, and that is especially true where children are concerned. Best Advice contacted RoSPA, the Royal Society For The Prevention Of Accidents and the country's leading authority on accident prevention.

As the law on children, restraints and seat belts has caused some confusion, they were kind enough to allow us to use part of their website to bring you all the information you will need to make sure your young passengers are safe and that you fully comply with the Law. The main RoSPA website is well worth a visit as well as their Child Car Seats website. They both have a wealth of information about other safety issues and advice on keeping your family safe.

(The following information is copyright to The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents and is reproduced by their kind permission.)

Child Seats and The Law - CARS

The law requires all children travelling in cars to use the correct child restraint until they are either 135 cm in height or the age of 12 (which ever they reach first). After this they must use an adult seat belt. There are very few exceptions, and the main ones are set out below. It is the driver's responsibility to ensure that children under the age of 14 years are restrained correctly in accordance with the law.

Children up to 3 years old - In the Front Seat:

The child MUST use the correct child restraint. It is illegal to carry a child in a rear-facing child seat in the front passenger seat, which is protected by an active frontal airbag.

Children up to 3 years old - In the Rear Seat:

The child MUST use the correct child restraint. In a licensed taxi or licensed hire car, if a child restraint is not available then the child may travel unrestrained in the rear. This is the only exception for children under 3, and has been introduced for practical rather than safety reasons. You should always think about ways to make sure that a child seat is available.

It is the driver's legal responsibility to ensure that the child is correctly restrained.

Children aged 3 and above, until they reach EITHER their 12th birthday OR 135cm in height:

In the Front Seat: The child MUST use the correct child restraint.

In the Rear Seat: The child MUST use the correct child restraint.

There are three exceptions where there is not a child seat available. In each case the child MUST use the adult belt instead. They are:

• in a licensed taxi or private hire vehicle
• if the child is travelling on a short distance for reason of unexpected necessity
• if there are two occupied child restraints in the rear which prevent the fitment of a third.

In addition, a child 3 and over may travel unrestrained in the rear seat of a vehicle if seat belts are not available.

It is the driver's legal responsibility to ensure that the child is correctly restrained.

Children over 1.35 metres in height, or who are 12 or 13 years old:

In the Front Seat: The adult seat belt MUST be worn if available.

In the Rear Seat: The adult seat belt MUST be worn if available.

It is the driver's legal responsibility to ensure that the child is correctly restrained.

Passengers over 14 years old:

When travelling in the front or rear seat, an adult seat belt MUST be worn if available.

It is the responsibility of the individual passenger to ensure that they are wearing the seat belt.

Child Seats and The Law - OTHER VEHICLES (vans, buses, coaches, minibuses and goods vehicles)

Other Vehicles - Front Seats:

The law requires children (and adults) travelling in the front of all vehicles, including vans, buses, coaches, minibuses and goods vehicles to use an appropriate child restraint or adult seat belts.

Other Vehicles - Rear Seats:

Rear Seats in Small Minibuses: Passengers sitting in the rear of minibuses that have an unladen weight of 2,540 kg or less must wear the seat belts that are provided. It is the driver’s responsibility to ensure that:

• children under 3 years of age use an appropriate child restraint if available
• children aged between 3 and 11 years, less than 1.35 metres tall use an appropriate child restraint if available, or if not available, wear the seat belt, if available
• children aged 12 and 13 years (and younger children who are 1.35 metres or taller) use the seat belt, if available

Passengers over the age of 14 years in smaller minibuses are legally responsible for wearing a seat belt themselves.

Rear Seats in Larger Minibuses: Passengers over the age of 14 MUST wear seat belts in the rear of larger minibuses (over 2,540 kg unladen weight). However, all passengers are strongly advised to wear seat belts or the correct child seat on all journeys.

Rear Seats in Coaches: Passengers over the age of 14 MUST wear seat belts in the rear coaches. However, all passengers are strongly advised to wear seat belts or the correct child seat on all journeys.

More Passengers than Seat Belts:

If there are not enough seat belts or child restraints in the car for all the passengers, then some may legally travel in the rear of the vehicle without wearing a seat belt. This may be legal, but it is not safe. Between 8 and 15 front seat occupants are killed every year by unbelted rear seat passengers flying forward in an accident.

The safest option is to only carry the same number of passengers as there are seat belts. If necessary, use two cars or make two journeys for the trip. If you must carry a passenger for whom there is no seat belt, it is better for the heaviest passengers to wear a seat belt, because they would cause more severe injuries to other people in the car if they are thrown about in a crash.

Legal Penalties:

If you are convicted of failing to wear a seat belt as a driver or passenger, you could face a fine of up to £500. As a driver, if you are convicted of failing to ensure that a child passenger is using an appropriate child restraint or wearing a seat belt according to the legal requirements described above, you could face a fine of up to £500.

In addition to the legal penalties, failure to wear a seat belt or failure to ensure that a child passenger uses an appropriate child restraint or wears a seat belt according to the legal requirements described above, could affect any claims against your motor insurance cover. You could also face civil proceedings for damages, if (for example) you failed to safely carry someone else's child.

But, of course, the most serious penalty of all could be that you or a passenger loses their life!