SEAT BELTS

robrace

robrace

Joined
Mar 31, 2014
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Location
Stratford-upon-Avon, UK
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30,780
MH
BUCCANEER CARAVEL
Exp
SINCE 1975
A mate of mine is selling his 4 berth motorhome but is a bit worried because it only has seat belts on the two front seats!!The rear seats are side facing and it would be impossible to fit belts.What is the law?Can you carry rear passengers without belts.I must admit that we have done!What is the use of 4,5,6 berth motorhomes if you can't take that many passengers!
 
It is illegal to carry children without proper belted seats and child seats if applicable for their size.
A grey area I believe for adults. Certainly not advisable.
 
I believe it depends on the build date but it's going back many years... Probably 1980s.
It's on the .Gov website but it's difficult to follow and even harder to find.
 
As above for regulations on carrying children, but seat belt usage and adults is clear.
This was copied from another website and tells you all you need to know.

If your motorhome was manufactured after 2006, you must identify the seats which you have designated as travel seats. Your motorhome must have seatbelts for all designated travel seats throughout the vehicle, and passengers are required to use them while the motorhome is in transit. Only the driver and the specified passenger seats require three-point seatbelts. The rest of the designated travel seats must have at least two point seatbelts. Side facing seats cannot be designated as travel seats.

If your motorhome was manufactured after 1st October 1988, it must have seat belts fitted for the driver, as well as any forward-facing passengers. These seatbelts must be worn when the motorhome is in transit. Seatbelts for the driver and designated passenger must be three-point belts. Other belts fitted in the vehicle are permitted to be two or three-point belts.

If your motorhome was manufactured before 1st October 1988, it must have seatbelts for the driver and a designated passenger in the front. It is not necessarily illegal for a rear seat passenger not to wear a seatbelt. However, the police could deem not wearing a seatbelt in the rear of the vehicle to be an offence if the motorhome is being driven at high speeds.

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Riverbankannie said:
It is illegal to carry children without proper belted seats and child seats if applicable for their size.
A grey area I believe for adults. Certainly not advisable.
Click to expand...

It isn't illegal if the van was built before 2012! We were travelling down the motorway one day and a campervan overtook us with two children running up and down the isle. OH called the police, and after some consultation they came back and said it wasn't illegal in a motorhome!

See here: https://www.rsa.ie/Documents/VS_Information_Notes/Seatbelts_Safety_Restraints/FAQs on Seatbelts on Motorhomes and Motorcaravans.pdf
 
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Sadly this number of seatbelts/berths question just seems to go on and on. Why on earth the manufacturers do it is a complete mystery to me - if you're only going to fit 2 seat belts why bother with more beds? Just improve the storage and also the payload - I'd be happier with the extra 35kg payload than the beds I've no intention of using. But can't take them out because the frame also supports the seats.

Yes, I know, you could have folk independently traveling, but then what is the point of a motorhome? We're back to the "better off with a caravan" argument.
 
thebriars said:
It isn't illegal if the van was built before 2012! We were travelling down the motorway one day and a campervan overtook us with two children running up and down the isle. OH called the police, and after some consultation they came back and said it wasn't illegal in a motorhome!

See here: https://www.rsa.ie/Documents/VS_Information_Notes/Seatbelts_Safety_Restraints/FAQs on Seatbelts on Motorhomes and Motorcaravans.pdf
Click to expand...
Not doubting the information given in this leaflet but it is produced for Ireland not U.K.
I wonder if same ?

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Clearly the police thought so, as do the C&CC:

Travelling in a motorhome without a seat belt where there are no available seat belts is not specifically outlawed. However, if a motorhome is stopped by the police and the officer is of the opinion the seating arrangements for the number of passengers being carried are inadequate and are likely to endanger other passengers or the stability of the vehicle, then he or she may instigate a prosecution. Powers for such a prosecution exist under Regulation 100 of the Construction and Use Regulations and/or under Section 40a of the Road Traffic Act 1988: Using Vehicles in a Dangerous Condition.
 
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This comes from Land Rover land but you're not allowed side facing seats any more due to potential bodily injury even if if restrained in a seatbelt.

If your motorhome was manufactured after 2006, you must identify the seats which you have designated as travel seats. Your motorhome must have seatbelts for all designated travel seats throughout the vehicle, and passengers are required to use them while the motorhome is in transit. Only the driver and the specified passenger seats require three-point seatbelts. The rest of the designated travel seats must have at least two point seatbelts. Side facing seats cannot be designated as travel seats.
and

It is illegal to place a child in a non approved child restraint.
There are no "approved restraints" for side facing seats.
 
Your V5 states how many people your MH can carry and it's likely that your insurance is determined by the number on that :(
(we've a 2006 era 4 berth MH with seatbelts for just two :o )
 
thebriars said:
It isn't illegal if the van was built before 2012! We were travelling down the motorway one day and a campervan overtook us with two children running up and down the isle. OH called the police, and after some consultation they came back and said it wasn't illegal in a motorhome!

See here: https://www.rsa.ie/Documents/VS_Information_Notes/Seatbelts_Safety_Restraints/FAQs on Seatbelts on Motorhomes and Motorcaravans.pdf
Click to expand...
Different laws in Eire (Southern Ireland) ... RSA. IE
UK law is stated in post #5 and again in post #6
 
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pappajohn said:
Different laws in Eire (Southern Ireland) ... RSA. IE
UK law is stated in post #5 and again in post #6
Click to expand...
Maybe, but the police here in the UK specifically stated it was not illegal. That was earlier this year.

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thebriars said:
Maybe, but the police here in the UK specifically stated it was not illegal. That was earlier this year.
Click to expand...

According to seat-belt law.

But I'm sure if they wanted to, you could have been prosecuted under Construction & Use Regulations, as per above.

My opinion, just don't chance it, illegal or not.
 
Simon Howards Motorhomes said:
That isnt correct.
Passengers over 12 can legally travel sideways without a seatbelt.
Click to expand...
I suggest your knowledge is better than mine but....why would you risk it? Why is a sideways sitting passenger less of an injury risk to everyone than a forward facing one? I don't fancy having a 14 yr old or 50 yr old hurtling forward into me in the event of an accident. I would never transport anyone without a belt, legally or illegally.
 
David and Sally said:
I suggest your knowledge is better than mine but....why would you risk it? Why is a sideways sitting passenger less of an injury risk to everyone than a forward facing one? I don't fancy having a 14 yr old hurtling forward into me in the event of an accident. I would never transport anyone without a belt, legally or illegally.
Click to expand...
I agree completely that I wouldn't be comfortable with it.
 

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