Seat Belts and Restraints

Overview

At a Glance: Everyone in the car must wear a properly adjusted seatbelt or use an approved child restraint on every trip. Children under 7 must be in a child car seat suited to their age. The driver is responsible for passengers under 16, and passengers aged 16 and over can also be fined themselves.

Seatbelt questions are among the most reliable marks on the DKT, because the rules are clear and have fixed age bands. Learn the child restraint table and the “who is responsible” rules and you’ll be well prepared.

Why Seatbelts Matter

According to the NSW Road User Handbook, seatbelts double your chance of surviving a crash and reduce your risk of injury. They stop you from being:

• thrown around inside the car;
• thrown out of the car;
• thrown into other passengers.

Airbags, padded panels and door latches help, but they don’t hold you in your seat. Airbags work with seatbelts. They don’t replace them.

Key Fact: A good driver still needs a seatbelt. You can’t control what other drivers do.

Wearing a Seatbelt Properly

A seatbelt should be low, flat and firm:

• Low: the lap part sits low across your hips.
• Flat: no twists or folds.
• Firm: no slack, with the sash over your shoulder and across your chest.

A sash under your arm or behind your back is worn incorrectly. It gives your upper body no protection, and NSW seatbelt cameras can detect it and issue a fine.

Each person needs their own seat and seatbelt. Never put one belt around two people, and never put it around yourself with a child on your lap. In a crash, the child can be crushed.

Exemptions

There are a few narrow exemptions:

• a person with a medical certificate;
• a full licence holder who is reversing (this doesn’t apply to L or P drivers);
• a driver of a delivery or garbage vehicle travelling under 25 km/h who needs to get in and out often.

A short trip near home is not an exemption.

Child Car Seats

Children under 7 must use an approved child car seat that suits their age and size:

Age	Required restraint
Birth to 6 months	Rear-facing child car seat (such as a baby capsule)
6 months to under 4 years	Rear-facing seat or forward-facing seat with an inbuilt harness
4 years to under 7 years	Forward-facing seat with an inbuilt harness or an approved booster seat
7 to 16 years	Booster seat or adult seatbelt, depending on size

The suggested minimum height for an adult lap-sash seatbelt is 145 cm. Turning 7 doesn’t mean a child fits an adult belt. If they’re too small, keep using a booster seat.

Fitting

Child car seats must be:

• fitted according to the manufacturer’s instructions;
• adjusted tightly;
• attached to an anchorage point made for child seats.

An Authorised Restraint Fitter can fit one for you. Use the restraint on every trip, whether the child is awake or asleep. Never carry a child in your arms.

Taxis

Taxis have their own, slightly different age rules, and every taxi must have a child restraint anchorage point. Taxis aren’t exempt from carrying children safely. In a private car, the stricter bands in the table above apply.

Children in the Front Seat

In a vehicle with two or more rows of seats:

• Under 4: must not sit in the front row, even in a child seat.
• 4 to under 7: may sit in the front only if all the back seats are already taken by other children under 7. They must still use the right child seat.

If adults are taking up the back seats, that’s not an exception. The adults should move.

DKT Tip: In front-seat questions, check two things: the child’s age band, and whether the back seats are full of younger children, not adults.

Who Is Responsible?

Passenger	Who can be fined
Under 16	The driver
16 or older	The passenger, and the driver also has a duty to make sure they’re buckled up

A parent sitting in the car does not take over the driver’s legal duty. The driver must also make sure no one travels in a part of the vehicle not designed for passengers, such as:

• the boot;
• the floor;
• a ute tray;
• a trailer or caravan.

Seatbelt and child restraint offences carry fines and demerit points, and double demerits apply in holiday periods.

Test yourself with the Seat Belts and Restraints quiz.

Common Mistakes on the DKT

• Thinking a booster seat is fine from birth or 6 months. Boosters are only an option from age 4.
• Thinking an under-4 can sit in front if they’re in a child seat. Not in a car with two or more rows.
• Saying a parent passenger is responsible for the kids. The driver is.
• Thinking airbags mean you don’t need a seatbelt.
• Assuming a child can use an adult belt at age 7. Size matters. The guide is 145 cm.
• Thinking L and P drivers can skip the belt when reversing. The reversing exemption is for full licence holders only.