New seat belt regulations to go into effect July 1

Beginning July 1, Indiana law will require all motor vehicle passengers, including those riding in backseats, to wear seat belts at all times.\nCurrently, only front seat passengers and passengers under the age of 16 are required to wear seat belts. Children must be in car seats or child restraints through age 8, Indiana State Police Sergeant Joe Watts said.\n“The law will be simpler July 1; it just means everyone will have to wear a seat belt no matter what,” he said.\nA factor in the change was the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute, which negotiated with lawmakers so law enforcement agencies cannot use seat belt checkpoints to issue citations for failure to wear seat belts.\nAccording to the National Safety Council, a seat belt checkpoint is defined as a place where officers at a fixed location stop all vehicles to determine seat belt and child safety seat use.\n“We will no longer be using that procedure as an agreement made to get some of the lawmakers to sign the bill,” Bloomington Police Sergeant Faron Lake said.\nEnforcement of seat belt law will increase greatly in July, Watts said, and currently the state police department has a zero-tolerance policy for seat belt violations.\n“Statewide we’ll have extra troopers and motor carrier operators out, looking for aggressive drivers, driving under the influence, seat belt and child restraint violations and overweight and oversized vehicle violations,” Lake said.\nTeens and night drivers are a big target of the “click it or ticket” initiative, Mica Perry, Indiana Criminal Justice Institute communications director said. This is because of an increase in the number of teens being killed or seriously injured in nighttime crashes and a significant decrease in seat belt usage at night, she said.\nThe current seat belt usage rating in Indiana is 84 percent, but Perry said the rating decreases to 64 percent at night.\n“You have more people out driving vehicles at night who are under the influence who are leaving bars, clubs and social settings where alcohol or use of illegal drugs may be involved,” Perry said.\nAnother change the new law brings is that pickup truck passengers will also be required to stay buckled up. Passengers in vehicles licensed with truck plates are not currently required to wear seat belts.\nBut exceptions to the law exist. U.S. postal service and newspaper route carriers, occupants of farm trucks used in agricultural farming operations and occupants in the living quarters of recreational vehicles are exempt from the seat belt law, according to the bill Gov. Mitch Daniels signed in April. Having a medical reason is another qualifier, as long as the passenger has written documentation from a physician.\nA common excuse for breaking seat belt laws, Watts said, is fear of being trapped in the vehicle when fire or water are involved in an accident. However, he said such an occurrence is unlikely.\n“Stats for that show that less than 1 percent of all motor vehicle crashes in the U.S. involve fire or water,” Watts said. “Your chances are almost zero of being involved in that kind of crash.”\nPerry was optimistic the change in law would increase safety for all passengers and drivers in the state.\n“The big push for a change is that seat belts save lives, so legislation made certain compromises in order to achieve the seat belt law now requiring all occupants in all positions (to wear seat belts),” Perry said. “But the change is to save lives.”