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<law><site_title>Virginia Decoded</site_title><site_url>https://vacode.org</site_url><law_id>72258</law_id><section_number>46.2-1092</section_number><catch_line>Safety lap belts or a combination of lap belts and shoulder harnesses to be installed in certain motor vehicles</catch_line><edition url="https://vacode.org/2025/" slug="2025" current="TRUE" last_updated="">2025</edition><structure><unit label="title" level="1" order_by="1" identifier="46.2">Motor Vehicles</unit><unit label="subtitle" level="2" order_by="1" identifier="III">Operation</unit><unit label="chapter" level="3" order_by="1" identifier="10">Motor Vehicle and Equipment Safety</unit><unit label="article" level="4" order_by="1" identifier="12">Safety Belts</unit></structure><text>
						<section><p>No <span class="dictionary">passenger car</span> or <span class="dictionary">autocycle</span> registered in the Commonwealth and manufactured for the year 1963 or for subsequent years shall be operated on the <span class="dictionary"><span class="dictionary">highways</span></span> in the Commonwealth unless the front seats thereof are equipped with adult safety lap belts or a combination of lap belts and <span class="dictionary">shoulder</span> harnesses of types approved by the <span class="dictionary">Superintendent</span>.
		Failure to use the safety lap belts or a combination of lap belts and <span class="dictionary">shoulder</span> harnesses after installation shall not be deemed to be <span class="dictionary">negligence</span>. Nor shall <span class="dictionary">evidence</span> of such nonuse of such devices be considered in mitigation of <span class="dictionary">damages</span> of whatever nature.
		No <span class="dictionary">motor vehicle</span> registered in the Commonwealth and manufactured after January 1, 1968, shall be issued a safety inspection approval sticker if any lap belt, combination of lap belt and <span class="dictionary">shoulder</span> harness, or passive belt systems required to be installed at the time of manufacture by the federal <span class="dictionary">Department</span> of Transportation have been either removed from the <span class="dictionary">motor vehicle</span> or rendered inoperable.
		No <span class="dictionary">autocycle</span> registered in the Commonwealth shall be issued a safety inspection sticker if any lap belt, combination of lap belt and <span class="dictionary">shoulder</span> harness, or passive belt systems required to be installed under this section have been either removed from the <span class="dictionary">autocycle</span> or rendered inoperable.
		No <span class="dictionary">passenger car</span>, except convertibles, registered in the Commonwealth and manufactured on or after September 1, 1990, shall be operated on the <span class="dictionary"><span class="dictionary">highways</span></span> in the Commonwealth unless the forward-facing rear outboard seats thereof are equipped with rear seat lap/<span class="dictionary">shoulder</span> belts of types required to be installed at the time of manufacture by the federal <span class="dictionary">Department</span> of Transportation.
		No <span class="dictionary">passenger car</span>, including convertibles, registered in the Commonwealth and manufactured on or after September 1, 1991, shall be operated on the <span class="dictionary"><span class="dictionary">highways</span></span> in the Commonwealth unless the forward-facing rear outboard seats thereof are equipped with rear seat lap/<span class="dictionary">shoulder</span> belts of types required to be installed at the time of manufacture by the federal <span class="dictionary">Department</span> of Transportation.
		No <span class="dictionary">truck</span>, multi-purpose vehicle, or bus, except school buses and <span class="dictionary">motor homes</span>, with a gross vehicle weight rating of 10,000 pounds or less, registered in the Commonwealth and manufactured on or after September 1, 1991, shall be operated on the <span class="dictionary"><span class="dictionary">highways</span></span> in the Commonwealth unless the forward-facing rear outboard seats thereof are equipped with rear seat lap/<span class="dictionary">shoulder</span> belts of types required to be installed at the time of manufacture by the federal <span class="dictionary">Department</span> of Transportation.
		<span class="dictionary">Passenger cars</span>, <span class="dictionary">trucks</span>, multipurpose <span class="dictionary">vehicles</span>, and buses, except school buses and <span class="dictionary">motor homes</span>, registered in the Commonwealth and manufactured on or after September 1, 1992, shall not be operated on the <span class="dictionary"><span class="dictionary">highways</span></span> of the Commonwealth unless equipped with rear seat lap/<span class="dictionary">shoulder</span> belts of types required to be installed at the time of manufacture by the federal <span class="dictionary">Department</span> of Transportation for each forward-facing rear outboard seating position on a readily removable seat.
		For the purposes of this section, forward-facing rear outboard seats are defined as those designated seating positions for passengers in outside front facing seats behind the <span class="dictionary">driver</span> and front passenger seats, except any designated seating position adjacent to a walkway that is located between the seat and the near side of the vehicle and is designed to allow access to a more rearward seating position.
		The <span class="dictionary">Superintendent</span> of State Police shall include in the Official <span class="dictionary">Motor Vehicle</span> Inspection Regulations a section which identifies each classification of <span class="dictionary">motor vehicle</span> required to be equipped with any of the devices described in the foregoing provisions of this section.
		Such regulations shall also include a listing of the exact devices which are required to be installed in each <span class="dictionary">motor vehicle</span> classification and the model year of each <span class="dictionary">motor vehicle</span> classification on which the standards of the federal <span class="dictionary">Department</span> of Transportation first became applicable.</p></section></text><history>1962, c. 357, &#xA7; 46.1-309.1; 1964, c. 334; 1966, c. 37; 1968, c. 171; 1970, c. 19; 1980, c. 486; 1982, c. 434; 1989, c. 727; 1992, c. 553; 2014, cc. 53, 256.</history><metadata></metadata></law>
