Minnesota statute requires that every occupant of a vehicle be buckled up or seated in the correct child restraint and that seat belts should be worn correctly. Seat belts should be worn low and snug across the hips and shoulder straps should never be tucked under an arm or behind the back. Law Enforcement can stop and ticket unbelted drivers or passengers including those in the back seat. A seat belt violation can cost more than $100.
Lack of seat belt use is a contributing factor in about 30 percent of all motorists killed. In 2020, 105 unbelted motorists died on Minnesota roads compared to 73 in 2019. 2020 saw the highest number of unbelted fatalities (13) of 15–19-year-olds since 2012 when there were 36. In a crash, odds are four times greater for injury if a motorist is not buckled up. In 2020, 79 percent of unbelted deaths occurred in Greater Minnesota outside the metro area.
In Minnesota, all children must be in a child restraint until they are 4 feet, 9 inches tall or eight years old, whichever comes first. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that all infants and toddlers should ride in a rear-facing car seat until they have reached the height and weight limits allowed by the car seat manufacturer. Toddlers and preschoolers who have reached the height and weight limits of the rear-facing car seat should use a forward-facing seat with harness until they reach the weight limit of the harness allowed by the car seat manufacturer. For school-age children who have reached the height and weight limits of the forward-facing seat a booster seat must be used with a lap and shoulder belt. It is recommended to keep a child in a booster seat based on their size rather than their age. Your child is ready for an adult seat belt when they can sit with their back against the vehicle seat, knees bent comfortably and completely over the vehicle seat edge without slouching, and feet touching the floor.
Always buckle up and insist passengers are belted too. Children under age 13 should always ride in the back seat. Pregnant women should wear the lap belt under the stomach, as low on the hips as possible and against the upper thighs. Airbags are designed to work with seat belts to keep vehicle occupants in a safe position during a crash. Airbags are not effective when the motorist is not belted.
Buckle up and arrive safely!
Chief David Thompson Howard Lake Police Department
Chair of the Safe Communities of Wright County Board