Seatbelts

dannyaspect34

dannyaspect34

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autotrail chieftain
Hi
So I have brought an autotrail chieftain 2010
So am I legally allowed to carry passengers in the back without seatbelts it has the bench seats no forward facing seats

been told yes been told no gov.uk seem to be very wishy washy about it all
 
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Lenny HB said:
No, if it's registered after 2006 (I may be a year out) you can only carry passengers on belted seats.
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Hi Lenny.
You are out but no worries in this case.
The law changed in October 2007.
So the OP can't carry folk in the back whatever the geometry of the seats.
Prior to that it was not illegal to carry people in a sideways seat. For an example see a 57 Reg (Sept) long wheelbase land rover with sideways facing seats as driven by HRH.

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Whether it's legal or illegal isn't really the question in my opinion.
It's just so dangerous it's not even worth thinking about
 
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Emmit said:
Hi Lenny.
You are out but no worries in this case.
The law changed in October 2007.
So the OP can't carry folk in the back whatever the geometry of the seats.
Click to expand...
I going to be pertantic, I said after 2006, 2007 is after 2006. :rofl:
 
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Lenny HB said:
I going to be pertantic, I said after 2006, 2007 is after 2006. :rofl:
Click to expand...
"but no worries in this case." :h:
I only know as our Hobby was Reg. in Sept. 2007 and we had sideways seats.
 
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And no one has mentioned insurance!
Ask you insurance company on their take on things.
Personally , legal or illegal, I do not perceive it as at all safe to have any unsecured passengers in any vehicle .
But this is only my personal opinion.
The sooner the motorhome industry advertising standards are altered, if they ever will be, to truthfully reflect that a 3 berth van and upwards must have correct seatbelts for all occupying passengers, and of a correct and legal specification, the better.
Unfortunately many vans are advertised as being capable of sleeping many occupants with scant regard to whether all those occupants can legally and be safely , carried all at the same time.
 
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Look boys I go by the spelling checker or predictive text, highest mark I ever got in English was 39% maths was a bit better at 92% :LOL:

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This is information I found on another site some time ago as I was in the same predicament. Apparently info was supplied by ROSPA.

To help@rospa.com Today at 12:18
Hi iwonder if you can help me, we are a group of motorhomers who have had long discussions about seat belt law in motorhomes and cannot find answers , so i thought if i wrote our questions to you you meay be able to help as it seems a grey area. so here goes;
1) If a motorhome is pre 2001 and has no rear seatbelts yet is a 4/5 berth can passengers travel in the back without seatbelts legally?
2) If your motorhome pre and after 2001 is a 5 berth and has two front facing seat with seatbelts in the rear and then has rear facing and side facing seats can the extra passengers travel in these seat without seatbelts legally?
Thank your for your patience and we look forward to your reply

Reply Reply to All Forward More
HELP <HELP@ROSPA.com>
Today at 15:43
Thank you for your email.
The seatbelt law states that were seatbelts are fitted they must be worn, so if seatbelts are not fitted legally adults will be able to sit in those seats. The law is different for children
The law requires that all children travelling in the front or rear seat of any car, van or goods vehicle must use the correct child car seat until they are either 135 cm in height or 12 years old (which ever they reach first). After this they must use an adult seat belt.
Children would not be able to use side facing seats
If the seat is side facing Children are prohibited from travelling in the back if the seats are sideways facing, even if they wear a seatbelt or travel in a child seat. Research has found that seatbelts offer very little support in the event of a collision on sideways facing seats. As a result of this the new car seat laws now prohibit children travelling in the rear of motor homes on sideways facing seats
Sideways facing seats are not a safe way to travel but there is nothing in law to say that adults cannot use these seats.
Hope this helps.

Anita Plumb
Information officer
T: +44 (0)121 248 2130
E: aplumb@rospa.com
www.rospa.com
 
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Colino said:
This is information I found on another site some time ago as I was in the same predicament. Apparently info was supplied by ROSPA.

To help@rospa.com Today at 12:18
Hi iwonder if you can help me, we are a group of motorhomers who have had long discussions about seat belt law in motorhomes and cannot find answers , so i thought if i wrote our questions to you you meay be able to help as it seems a grey area. so here goes;
1) If a motorhome is pre 2001 and has no rear seatbelts yet is a 4/5 berth can passengers travel in the back without seatbelts legally?
2) If your motorhome pre and after 2001 is a 5 berth and has two front facing seat with seatbelts in the rear and then has rear facing and side facing seats can the extra passengers travel in these seat without seatbelts legally?
Thank your for your patience and we look forward to your reply

Reply Reply to All Forward More
HELP <HELP@ROSPA.com>
Today at 15:43
Thank you for your email.
The seatbelt law states that were seatbelts are fitted they must be worn, so if seatbelts are not fitted legally adults will be able to sit in those seats. The law is different for children
The law requires that all children travelling in the front or rear seat of any car, van or goods vehicle must use the correct child car seat until they are either 135 cm in height or 12 years old (which ever they reach first). After this they must use an adult seat belt.
Children would not be able to use side facing seats
If the seat is side facing Children are prohibited from travelling in the back if the seats are sideways facing, even if they wear a seatbelt or travel in a child seat. Research has found that seatbelts offer very little support in the event of a collision on sideways facing seats. As a result of this the new car seat laws now prohibit children travelling in the rear of motor homes on sideways facing seats
Sideways facing seats are not a safe way to travel but there is nothing in law to say that adults cannot use these seats.
Hope this helps.

Anita Plumb
Information officer
T: +44 (0)121 248 2130
E: aplumb@rospa.com
www.rospa.com
Click to expand...
That is about a 2001van the OP van is 2010.
 
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Lenny HB said:
That is about a 2001van the OP van is 2010.
Click to expand...
Rospa's reply is just about side facing seats not about the year of the van. It might be a bit outdated now as this was a few years ago.
 
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Any of you seat belt safety nuts ever ride a motorbike? Or carry a pillion? I've driven cars with no seatbelts, carried my children in the back of a Reliant Robin (no child seats available & probably not thought of at the time), and ridden a motorbike with my (at the time) 12 year old daughter on the back.

I wouldn't drive without myself and passengers correctly belted where the facility exists and I wouldn't carry kids in side-facing or unbelted forward facing seats in the van but neither would I turn down use of a pre-seatbelt car.

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Our Compass is a 4 berth MH but only has 2 belted seats.
The log book says it’s for 2 people.
I tried to find an authoritative answer about taking 2 other passengers. But failed.
I asked my insurer and they said ‘no’.
And should there be an accident how well will the driver do legally with the health risk taken with unrestrained passengers?
You can’t take unthererted/unsecured dogs I’m a vehicle, right?
 
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Lenny HB said:
No, if it's registered after 2006 (I may be a year out) you can only carry passengers on belted seats.
Click to expand...
I spoke to a guy last year that had a pre 2006 motorhome 4 berth but only 2 belted seats in the cab and side facing non belted bench seats in the hab area . He proudly explained how he was able to carry his children in the rear of the motorhome and had even “told a copper where to go “ when he was spoken to and advised that it’s extremely dangerous to carry passengers unbelted in a vehicle regardless of what the law states . It’s safe to say I didn’t talk to him again . I was utterly shocked .
 
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All things are relative!

I also ride a sports motorbike and would feel a lot safer on the side seat of a motorhome trundling along at 40mph than riding the bike. Having said that I wouldn't take children on the bike or perch them on a side seat.

If those travelling know and accept the associated risk, I can't see an issue.
 
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Lenny HB said:
No, if it's registered after 2006 (I may be a year out) you can only carry passengers on belted seats.
Click to expand...

You're not far out Lenny.
The law relating to sideways seats being a No -No changed in October 2007

Any vehicle FIRST REGISTERED before then can carry passengers in a rear sideways facing seat without the necessity of that seat having a seat belt
 
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