Can You Be Fined If Your Passenger Isn't Wearing A Seat Belt?

If you are in a vehicle, the law says you need to be wearing a seatbelt. And if you are the driver, it is your responsibility to ensure any passengers under 16 years of age are wearing their seatbelts. If you are pulled over and not wearing a seatbelt, and any passengers under 16 are not wearing a seatbelt, you can be fined.

Driver’s Responsibility

When operating a vehicle, as a driver you need to be wearing your seatbelt before you begin driving. You are also responsible for:

• Making sure every other passenger has a working seatbelt
• Everyone under 16 years of age and under is wearing a seatbelt
• Children are properly secured in a car seat or booster seat

If you are pulled over and any of the above are not being followed, you may get a traffic ticket.

Passengers’ Responsibility

Once you are 16 years old, it becomes your responsibility to wear your seatbelt. If pulled over, passengers not wearing a seatbelt may be ticketed, not the driver. The following are a few exemptions of when you are not required to wear a seatbelt:

• Employees and agents of Canada Post delivering mail
• A person in police custody when being transported
• People with medical certificates that are unable to wear a seatbelt
• Ambulance attendants or firefighters responding to an emergency in the back of an emergency vehicle

Fines

If you do not require any person(s) under the age of 16 to wear a seatbelt, and you are pulled over, you could receive a $200-$1000 fine and get two demerit points on your driving record. If you liked this blog, check out this one on, “Parking Lot Collisions: Who’s At Fault?”