Sleeping on the move ! (1 Viewer)

[mpdcymru]

and reply today.. copy pasted




To: James Allan
Subject: RE: Question Asked from England and Wales FAQ Web Site
Reply from Ask The Police


James

If seatbelts are available for the passengers that are present, they should be worn. Please see the following link:

http://www.motorhomeinfo.co.uk/seat-belts-in-motorhomes/

If no seatbelts are available to use, then a passenger could legally be 'unbelted' in the rear of the motorhome and sit/lay wherever they wish. However, you should consider the safety implications of this, should a collision occur.

Please note that in the circumstances you describe, even if the person was not committing an offence in relation to seat belt legislation, they may commit the offence of carrying passengers in a manner likely to cause danger. However, this would very much depend on the circumstances and would ultimately be a matter for a court to decide.

Regards,
PNLD
(NR)(CS)

that was my understanding i.e. if available, seat belts should be used. It may also be worth noting that the European Whole Vehicle Type Approval Regs do say that sideways facing seats are not safe for travel and should not be used for such. motorhomes etc, now have "designated" seats and these must be fitted with appropriate restraints.

 

[vectian]

Is this legal!
Discuss..........



and saw a politician behind interviewed in his tour buss siting unbelted with his guest whilst the camera man stood and filmed them.





Vlad

Does it matter if a politician gets injured or worse, Its just one less parasite to get at our hard earned money through their expenses claims

 

[Yorick]

I often send the missus into the back to get me a nice cold beer from the fridge

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[Yorick]

According to the above you can only have unbelted passengers in the rear if there are no seat belts AND the mh was registered before October 2007.

After that date you cannot carry passengers at all unless there is a designated travel seat with belts.

Aha, this 2007 confuses me. My van was registered on 2005, but converted in 2011. Does this apply to me then ?

 

[ianhyslop]

As I have already said , it is not illegal to sleep in the back ,

 

[ianhyslop]

The reference to the old chestnut of narcotic gassing is an urban myth .

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[Wildman]

I can't sleep whilst on the move, some bugger always honks their horn when I carry on through red lights, hee hee.

 

[Reallyretired]

As I have already said , it is not illegal to sleep in the back ,

Its not illegal providing that the motorhome was first registered before Oct 2007, otherwise you could only sleep in a belted travel seat. Even where the mh was registered before 2007 you could still be prosecuted in the event of an accident.

SWMBO often sleeps while we are going along, but does it sitting in a belted seat.

 

[colinw]

In the link it mentions seats badged for travel , is that the stickers I peeled off the seat base ? . oops ! .
Thanks for the info .

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[TheDogMan]

I bought my hobby off a guy who only ever used it to tow a trailer with a classic racing car to races, mainly overseas in fact I still have a Monaco sticker on the screen, there was a ding in the kitchen worktop and a broken plastic hanger on the shower screen, that got broken when he had a shower whilst his wife was driving down a european motorhome and the same with the kitchen that happened whilst she was cooking a spagetti bolonaise. my wife has gone to bed in the overcab and the rear single on late or early hours long journeys home without me even knowing, telling her off does not seem to work, the reason I did not know was that we have a substantual bulkhead behind the cab with a sliding door in it so difficult sometimes to know whats going on !

 

[Gandhi]

The wife often goes and has a sleep in the back. She suffers from back pain and it helps. If all we ever thought of were the bad things that can happen we'd never leave the house, let alone in a 3.5 ton motor home.

 

[Yorick]

Sometimes we set the cruise control and both go for a kip. The dog loves it when he gets to drive

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[Welsh girl]

In the ambulance Taking Terry to hospital in Portugal, he sat behind the driver facing back belted in a seat I sat belted in a side seat while the paramedic sat perched on the stretcher/ bed. Unbelted! ! Reading this thread made me think he shouldn't have done that, he would have been thrown at Terry in a collision.
Also we saw dustbin men hanging on the back of their trucks every single night,veering round corners.

 

[PeteH]

As Per my Previous Post. Too much "LAW". not enough "common sense". the reply from the "copper" said it all IMHO. Fence sitting at it`s best.

Pete

 

[Fletton]

James

If seatbelts are available for the passengers that are present, they should be worn. Please see the following link:

http://www.motorhomeinfo.co.uk/seat-belts-in-motorhomes/

......

......

Regards,
PNLD
(NR)(CS)

My two penneth......

The law is usually very precise.... I note the word "should" in the above statement.. as opposed to the word "must"....

Me thinks that someone is skirting the issue somewhat!

John T

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[GWAYGWAY]

Well I think you need to look at the crash test films on YouTube where the motorhome is hit, that might change your mind.

 

[Fletton]

I wasn't suggesting anything other than the law being very specific and the reply from plod ... being not so...

 

[Camper634]

Like everything you have to determine the risk.I might win the lottery on Saturday but I won't hand in my notice just in case I don't.God forbid I might have an accident while my wife is in the loo but then again I might not.I haven't had one in 10 years of Motorhome driving so I'm hoping the odds are in my favour.If you worried what might happen you would never leave the house!

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[Chris]

We used to put our kids to bed when they were tired, and let em sleep.

We prepare food, get drinks use the loo, and I've even been known to shower once or twice over the years leaving early to save times

Having seen lots of European Motorhomes in crashes, it doesn't matter where you are in it if the is a crash, and as everything flies forward out through the windscreen, being belted in at the front will kill you anyway

We never wanted the risk of belting them into the dinette, only to be "T" boned leaving the rear bed where they would (could) have been!

Jeez that cheers me up Eddie.

When I buckle my daughter into her dinette seat next time I will be crapping it now.

 

[yodeli]

Law is one matter to me , and decisions you make for yourself (and not implying any danger for anyone else)is another matter.
Both our hymers (JJ's and mine) have only 2 seats with belt fitted. He can carry 6 people I think , I was allowed by the DREAL to carry 4. When I take more than one person aboard I always say "Be aware you will not be safe without a belt on. Do you still wish to come? Up to now got only Yeses!
BUT as far as I am concerned, I used to sleep at the rear, on the large bed while JJ was driving, mainly when driving at night time. Firstly because I know I am going to be sleepy quite quickly, and secondly because being dead scared on the passenger seat at nigh time (I see....things on the road.... I'm terrible!) I have made more than once poor JJ scared by jumping on my seat, which of course got on his nerves, changing him into a grumpy git.
It was my choice to go on the rear bed, and I knew the risks, and it was risky only for me, not involving anyone else! On the other hand , knowing you're being a pain for the driver, isn't it safer to go away and leave him alone??? Making the driver nervous doesn't help driving properly! Lots of passengers being properly belted can be a higher risk for everyone's sake if they get on the driver's nerves.....me think!!!!

Amicalement
Frankie

 

[Spottycatz]

Just a thought. Would it be possible to fit a 'bed belt'?

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