“Strong seat belt reminders are an important component of the Safe System approach to transportation, and we welcome NHTSA’s proposed upgrade to the standard,” said David Harkey, president of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has issued a proposed rule requiring automakers to equip vehicles with seat belt use warning systems for the right front passenger and rear seats to increase seat belt use. These would apply to passenger cars, trucks, most buses, and multi-purpose passenger vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating of 10,000 pounds (4536 kilograms) or less. Seat belt warning systems use visual and audible alerts to encourage seat belt use.
“Wearing a seat belt is one of the most effective ways to prevent injury and death in a crash,” NHTSA Acting Administrator Ann Carlson said. “In 2021, almost 43,000 people lost their lives on America’s roads, and half of those in vehicles were unbelted. This proposed rule can help reduce that number by getting more to buckle up.”
The new rule would amend Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 “Occupant Crash Protection,” which currently requires a seat belt warning for the driver’s seat but does not require a warning for other seating positions. The proposed rule would also update current driver seat belt warning system requirements.
NHTSA estimates that the proposed requirements would prevent approximately 300 non-fatal injuries and more than 100 fatalities annually. While seat belt use is much higher than it was a decade ago, NHTSA admitted “there is room for improvement. Usage rates for rear seat passengers have consistently been below those for the front seats. For rear seat occupants, seat belts reduce the risk of fatality by 55% for passenger cars and 74% for light trucks and vans. For front seat occupants, seat belts reduce the risk of fatality by 44% for passenger cars and 63% to 73% for light trucks and vans.”
In 2019, NHTSA published an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking comment on a variety of issues related to potential rear seat belt warning requirements. The feedback from the 45 comments received years ago was incorporated [Finally? Slowly?] into the development of the newly issued NPRM. (AutoInformed: US Department of Transportation Budget for FY 2023 – $142B)
NHTSA Proposed Rule Requirements for Rear Seats
- A visual warning on vehicle startup lasting at least 60 seconds to notify the driver of the status of the rear seat belts.
- An audio-visual change-of-status warning lasting at least 30 seconds if a rear seat belt is unbuckled while the vehicle is in operation.
NHTSA Proposed Rule Requirements for Front Seats
- An audio-visual seat belt use warning for the right front passenger’s seat.
- An audio-visual seat belt use warning for the driver and right front passenger seat that remains active until both the driver and right front passenger seat occupants are belted.
- An audio-visual change-of-status warning for both the driver and right front passenger seats that remains active until the unfastened seat belt is refastened.
NHTSA claimed that automakers would have the flexibility to adjust warning signal characteristics – such as frequency and volume – to make the warning both effective and acceptable to vehicle owners. Thus far an industry-wide response has not been forthcoming from lobbying groups such as The Alliance For Automotive Innovation.
“Strong seat belt reminders are an important component of the Safe System approach to transportation, and we welcome NHTSA’s proposed upgrade to the standard,” said David Harkey, president of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. “The small minority of drivers and passengers who fail to use this basic piece of safety equipment account for nearly half of crash fatalities, and our research has shown that if all vehicles had persistent reminders to buckle up, it would save about 1500 lives a year.”
NHTSA Proposes Rule Expanding Seat Belt Use Warnings
“Strong seat belt reminders are an important component of the Safe System approach to transportation, and we welcome NHTSA’s proposed upgrade to the standard,” said David Harkey, president of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has issued a proposed rule requiring automakers to equip vehicles with seat belt use warning systems for the right front passenger and rear seats to increase seat belt use. These would apply to passenger cars, trucks, most buses, and multi-purpose passenger vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating of 10,000 pounds (4536 kilograms) or less. Seat belt warning systems use visual and audible alerts to encourage seat belt use.
“Wearing a seat belt is one of the most effective ways to prevent injury and death in a crash,” NHTSA Acting Administrator Ann Carlson said. “In 2021, almost 43,000 people lost their lives on America’s roads, and half of those in vehicles were unbelted. This proposed rule can help reduce that number by getting more to buckle up.”
The new rule would amend Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 “Occupant Crash Protection,” which currently requires a seat belt warning for the driver’s seat but does not require a warning for other seating positions. The proposed rule would also update current driver seat belt warning system requirements.
NHTSA estimates that the proposed requirements would prevent approximately 300 non-fatal injuries and more than 100 fatalities annually. While seat belt use is much higher than it was a decade ago, NHTSA admitted “there is room for improvement. Usage rates for rear seat passengers have consistently been below those for the front seats. For rear seat occupants, seat belts reduce the risk of fatality by 55% for passenger cars and 74% for light trucks and vans. For front seat occupants, seat belts reduce the risk of fatality by 44% for passenger cars and 63% to 73% for light trucks and vans.”
In 2019, NHTSA published an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking comment on a variety of issues related to potential rear seat belt warning requirements. The feedback from the 45 comments received years ago was incorporated [Finally? Slowly?] into the development of the newly issued NPRM. (AutoInformed: US Department of Transportation Budget for FY 2023 – $142B)
NHTSA Proposed Rule Requirements for Rear Seats
NHTSA Proposed Rule Requirements for Front Seats
NHTSA claimed that automakers would have the flexibility to adjust warning signal characteristics – such as frequency and volume – to make the warning both effective and acceptable to vehicle owners. Thus far an industry-wide response has not been forthcoming from lobbying groups such as The Alliance For Automotive Innovation.
“Strong seat belt reminders are an important component of the Safe System approach to transportation, and we welcome NHTSA’s proposed upgrade to the standard,” said David Harkey, president of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. “The small minority of drivers and passengers who fail to use this basic piece of safety equipment account for nearly half of crash fatalities, and our research has shown that if all vehicles had persistent reminders to buckle up, it would save about 1500 lives a year.”