Seat belt/Airbag Safety

Regardless of where you drive, and no matter how safe a driver you are, sudden stops and collisions do happen. Even if your vehicle is equipped with air bags, always wear your seat belt. If you don’t, you may not be in the right position to benefit from the protection air bags provide. Air bags do not protect you in a roll-over or side impact collision â€” so always wear a seat belt.

To ensure safety of vehicle occupants, in Ontario it’s the law for drivers and passengers to wear their seat belt. Drivers must ensure that passengers under 16 years old are buckled up or secured in a child safety seat. If you don’t, you could face a fine ranging between $200 and $1,000 and two demerit points. As for passengers 16 and older, they are responsible for wearing their seat belt. They must provide their name, address and date of birth to a police officer. If they are not using or wearing their seat belt properly, the passenger can be fined.

Here are some points to remember:

Seat belts must be in proper working condition.
A seat belt won’t protect you if it is not worn properly. Take a few seconds to position the lap portion of your seat belt snug to your body and low on the hips. Never wear the shoulder strap under the arm where it could damage your ribs.
A seat belt keeps the driver behind the wheel and in control in a collision. It helps keep your head and body from hitting the inside of the vehicle.
A seat belt keeps you inside the vehicle during a collision, rather than being thrown through a windshield or door onto the roadway.
Without a seatbelt, passengers become high-speed projectiles in a collision.

For more information, see Transport Canada’s Air Bag Safety web site.

For more information check out the following links from the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario

Ministry of Transportation

Related Resources