While new cars were already required by the feds to be equipped w/ seat belts (1968), on Jan 1, 1985, New York was the first state to require that the seat belts be worn. New Hampshire is now the only state in the USA that doesn’t require seat belts be worn.
Our 57 ford came with seat belts and dad insisted we use them. Much more effective than a law.
2 Likes
In 1956, Ford advertised safety features including padded dashboard and sun visors and a recessed hub on the steering wheel as well as seat belts
1 Like
Informative, George. Still I’m not surprised that NY would be the first to activate a law. This state is notorious for enacting laws.
I like seatbelts. They hold me securely behind the wheels. I heavily rely on seatbelts due to my physical issues. When I’m going around a corner, my body tends to lean in the direction of the corner and most times I would fall off the seat if I’m not wearing a seatbelt. That was the case with my Dad’s defender, which I mistakenly called a Jeep.
I just hate that sometimes when I pull up at the drive-thru and want to reach for my wallet the seatbelt would get stuck as if it is expecting an impact.
I used to have an old '64 Ford F100. It didn’t come with seatbelts from the factory, but always passed VA state inspection based on some manner of grandfathering - if it wasn’t equipped with them to start, then it couldn’t be required. (On the other hand, if it had them to start, and I had removed them, then it would have failed).
I grew up in NY, and actually started wearing a seatbelt sometime soon before the '85 law. It wasn’t because of my parents or whatever. We used to fight over who got to ride the “hump.” (The floor pan lump behind the back seat that was there to make room for the driveshaft.) And, you know, ride in the back of the pickup, or up in the camper loft on road trips. Those were good days.
But as a teenager, I was driving home from work one night on the highway, and for whatever reason had a moment of clarity - I’m sitting in a chair behind a sheet of glass flying along at like 60mph, and attached to nothing. Quite suddenly, it seemed like a silly thing to do. That’s when I started wearing a seat belt.
3 Likes
When I first got my 59 Pontiac in 68, I stopped by the auto store for belts, then to the DX station to have them put in. I don’t remember using them much in town though, just mainly on the highway.
Shortly after my father bought our '63 Plymouth, Chevron gas stations were running a special sale on the installation of lap belts. My father took advantage of the price cut to have them installed in the front of our Plymouth, and we always used them.
When my uncle (Dad’s brother-in-law) saw our seat belts, he made a snide remark to my father: What’s the matter? Don’t you trust yourself behind the wheel?
My father’s response was, “I trust myself, but there are a lot of others on the road who I DON’T trust”.
3 Likes
We do have a seat belt law, but it only applies to anyone under 18. There is no law that applies to adults. Maybe they thought that a law wasn’t needed since you should be smart enough to wear a seatbelt.
Years ago, when I was a software consultant to the insurance industry - the insurance industry was (and probably still is) trying to get states to pass a law stating that if you are injured in an accident and you were NOT wearing a seatbelt then the insurance company does NOT have to pay for your injuries. So far the states have been reluctant to pass such a law.
Seat belts are not required a the back seat IF over 18, here in TN…
You need a seat with bolsters that hold you in place. I came across this invention on kick starter that would be helpful for you. I know nothing about the product other what I read on the site. I am leaving it just to give you the idea of maybe looking online for a product like it which might help you.
This Product That Adds Lateral Support To Car Seat May Well Be A Genius Invention -
1 Like
My parents bought a new Rambler in 1960. My dad insisted that seat belts be installed as part of the deal. Three years later, my mother and brother were on a trip to visit me and were rear ended by a semi. The Rambler was totaled. Thec car buckled in the middle and the engine jammed into the radiator. Only one door would open. My mother and brother were not injured.
I have had seartbelts in all the cars I have owned. I installed seat belts in my first car, a 1947 Pontiac.
Seat belts have paid off for me. The police set up a roadblock on the road I take home from work. The police were checking to see if the motorists were using their seat belts. I was strapped in and was given a coffee mug.
1 Like
Personally, I’m ok with the gov’t requiring seat belts be installed in new cars, but I see no need for police enforcement to make sure they are being worn. Seems overly intrusive. Ok by me if the insurance company refuses to pay-up if the belts aren’t being used.
I think in most cases it’s a secondary offense like a tail light out. Gives them an excuse to stop the car and check for more serious issues. That’s why Minneapolis won’t let them stop cars for this or expired plates anymore because they were finding too many wanted felons. Sad.
Like I said about 1968 I was coming out of the drive in with my girl friend drinking a coke. I got lit up by a deputy as soon as I hit the county road. He said he thought I might be drinking alcohol. No just coke sir but I don’t mind if you check. Just don’t take me bro or I’ll wet my pants and get embarrassed. (No I didn’t say that. Didn’t have takers then.)
Oh, yes. I’m sure that there are all sorts of reasons that Minneapolis officials want to keep from finding “wanted felons.” I mean who would want to find them? 
It’s a primary offense in MN. Me-thinks someone needs to broaden their sources of information about the world.
2 Likes
Wow you’re kinda in a snooty mood. Might want to read something other than the great tribune yourself.
TN is a click it or ticket state, they can/will pull you over for nothing more than to ticket you for not wearing your seatbelt… The driver is responsible for any kids under 18 in the back seat and anyone in the front seat unless a licensed driver 16 and above, at which point the 16+yo licensed driver in the passenger front seat gets their own ticket… I forget if a licensed driver in the back seat gets a ticket or if the driver does… but if 18+ in the back seat no seatbelt is required…
The old joke is a state trooper pulls a guy over and comes up to the window and ask for his DL and registration, the drivers hands them over and the LEO goes back to the car to run the info, you know check for warrants and stuff, then he comes back to the driver and hands him his DL and registration back and tells him to have a nice day, but before he walks away, he ask the driver how often does he drive with the seatbelt ran through the steering wheel??.. 
Not really. Just a reality dweller long tired of the “fake news” (read that backwards from your seat) followers.
IDK what “the great tribune” means. But in any case, when in doubt, I triangulate. (Or even quadrangulate). In other words, I don’t just look at or accept whatever noise fits my pre-existing beliefs. Confirmation bias is a disease. And it breeds in echo-chambers.
And many people believe weird things because of it.
2 Likes
Calif , remarkably, is worse, any driver can legally be stopped for no other reason other than they are driving on the public road.
1 Like
I guess Minnesota changed it to a primary offense in 2009 so they can stop you for it. Hasn’t ever been a concern to me since I always wear the belt anyway except at a drive through.
Me either, I have a hard time not wearing it even if I am just moving a vehicle around in the driveway, and I even wear it going through a drive through… lol
1 Like