Seats and the law

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Badger

Badger

Well-Known Member
Posts
4,669
Location
Marldon, Devon
Mine is registered as a 3 seat Land Rover but as we know the middle front seat is an afterthought as no one taller than 12" is gonna be able to use it.

Anyway the kids (well teenagers )love it in the back of the Landy on the wheel arch box section either side with some cushions.

A few questions though


  • If no one is sat in the front passenger side, does one of the kids from the rear have to sit up front as the seat is available?
  • Is there a law regarding how people in the rear are to be secured, given the Landy is regsitered as a 3 seater only

  • If i make some timber based cushions with backs, when do i cross the threshhold of them becoming ' seats ' that require seatbelts.

I've done a google search but no where gives a definitive answer to the questions, any information or links to information welcome

Cheers
 
She's an 1988 model 90, so 22 years old, will give it another search today.

As of 2006 the law has changed regarding seat belt laws, mainly for children, here's an extract i found:

All new cars must have:

* Front and rear seatbelts fitted that must be worn

Older cars that do not have seatbelts:

* Do not need to have them fitted and worn, but cannot be used for carrying children

However if seatbelts are fitted in older cars they must be worn.
Click to expand...

'Children' states any person under the age of 14 years, fortunately both mine are older, so classed as adults, however any child under the age of 14 shouldn't, by law, be allowed in the back of the Landy without proper seats & belts.

There is more information on the page as well, found it here:

http://www.lawontheweb.co.uk/seatbelts.htm
 
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I was doing some research a while back and the sideways facing seats in older cars dont need seatbelts. dont know too many details abou it im afraid.
 
A child 3 and over may travel unrestrained in the rear seat of a vehicle if seat belts are not available.

thats why i let mine travel in the back of pig, during her restoration i will be fitting lap belts tho on the side facing seats;)
 
landybird said:
A child 3 and over may travel unrestrained in the rear seat of a vehicle if seat belts are not available.

thats why i let mine travel in the back of pig, during her restoration i will be fitting lap belts tho on the side facing seats;)
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Not sure I would do that, in a front on collision you definitely wouldn't want to be wearing a lap belt on a side-facing seat, for obvious reasons.

If you're going to be carrying kids around in the back, I would take out the side-facing seat cushions and spend some cash fitting 2 proper (modern Defender style) forward facing seats with 3-point seatbelts. 100 times better than lap belts - those things are death traps, especially when used on side-facing seats.
 
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Langers said:
Not sure I would do that, in a front on collision you definitely wouldn't want to be wearing a lap belt on a side-facing seat, for obvious reasons.
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The problem is.....
Would you prefer to be wearing a lap belt - or no belt at all?
what about a side impact?

who knows where the impact (if any) would come from, but shirley a restrained passenger is better than one flying around the car untethered?
 
What I mean is that a side facing seat and a lap belt is a deadly combination, whichever way you look at it. In a head-on collision, your body is going to fold over and around the seatbelt, inflicting horrific injuries, possible spinal damage etc.
 
Langers said:
What I mean is that a side facing seat and a lap belt is a deadly combination, whichever way you look at it. In a head-on collision, your body is going to fold over and around the seatbelt, inflicting horrific injuries, possible spinal damage etc.
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Dont doubt it - but is no seat belt betterer?
 
Don't know - I would think you'd still be badly injured without wearing one, you'd be free to fly around the cabin, but you might only end up with a broken limb or cuts and bruises as opposed to spinal injury
 
Langers said:
What I mean is that a side facing seat and a lap belt is a deadly combination, whichever way you look at it. In a head-on collision, your body is going to fold over and around the seatbelt, inflicting horrific injuries, possible spinal damage etc.
Click to expand...

I'm with MHM.

This may sound pretty heartless but not only will an unrestrained child be likely to be killed in a head on collision but there is also the likelyhood that anyone forward of them will be too. A child restrained with lap belts is still likely to be killed or seriously injured but anyone forward of them has a better chance of survival.
 
Hi Gents - if your landy is insured for 3 seats, it is not insured to carry passengers in the rear. However regardless of how many your landy is insured to carry it is illegal to carry passengers in the rear of a vehicle that does not have seats fitted - that would fall under the same category as carrying passengers in the back of a van - you will not be insured.....driving a vehicle without insurance can result in seizure and crushing.
Finally as to wear belts or not - the greatest risk of injury comes from leaving the vehicle during an accident, recently there was a tragic case in north devon where a landrover overturned at low speed and the young driver died due to not wearing a seatbelt and falling partially out of the side window of the vehicle as it rolled.
 
on an aside ...........

in a 7 seater Disco, has anyone changed the 2 dicky seats for two front seats? I reckon they would fit, facing backwards and you could use the normal rear seat belt mounts.
 
lap belts are the recommended restraint for side facing seats.
I know full well the risk i take every time i carry the kids in the landy, but having seen how the back of a rear seat in a modern car popped out of it's locking mechanism and folded down after a rear impact i really don't think that forward facing seats are exactly a life saver either!, oh and it was my car that happened to and thankfully my kids weren't in the car at the time. riding in the landy the kids are as much at risk as if they were on a bus or train! no seatbelts in them either:rolleyes:
 
Yeah, no you kind of missed my point, I was advising LB to fit proper forward facing seats with 3-point seatbelts for her kids, as having side facing seats with lap belts is in my eyes as bad as if not worse for them than having no seat belt at all. :)
 
landybird said:
lap belts are the recommended restraint for side facing seats.
I know full well the risk i take every time i carry the kids in the landy, but having seen how the back of a rear seat in a modern car popped out of it's locking mechanism and folded down after a rear impact i really don't think that forward facing seats are exactly a life saver either!,
Click to expand...

you should see what happens in a head on collision when the unsecured bass box in a chav mobile makes a bid for freedom.:eek::eek::eek:
 
wantaquad said:
Hi Gents - if your landy is insured for 3 seats, it is not insured to carry passengers in the rear. However regardless of how many your landy is insured to carry it is illegal to carry passengers in the rear of a vehicle that does not have seats fitted - that would fall under the same category as carrying passengers in the back of a van - you will not be insured.....driving a vehicle without insurance can result in seizure and crushing.
Click to expand...

Can you verify this from anywhere? Both my teens & the dog usually travel in the rear when we go out.
 
paul_c said:
Its common sense. If you really wanted it in black & white, browse and search on www.bailii.org but I imagine it would take ages to find the relevant case law or regulation!
Click to expand...

Common sense isn't what I'm looking for, I'm looking for the way the law works in regards to anyone travelling in the rear of the Landy, hence the original questions regarding it.
 
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