MT Seat Belt Law Bottom Line: Safety First

Montana Seat Belt Laws: What Can You Get Pulled Over For In Montana

In Montana there has been a seat belt law officially on the books since the 1960's. You may have heard that if you are driving without a seat belt that you can get pulled over but that isn't exactly the case. The differentiation comes from what classification the law is given if it is a primary offense or a secondary one.

READ MORE: Montana Ranks In The Top 5 For Road Rage

What Is A Primary Offense In Montana

A primary offense means this is something a police officer could pull you over for. Your seat belt not being in use is not a reason that you can be pulled over but it is still against the law. Meaning if you get pulled over for another "primary offense" you still will get ticketed for the seat belt as a secondary offense.

via GIPHY

Montanan's have been trying to change this law according to the Montana Department of Transportation. Their website shows that a primary seat belt law could safe 20 to 30 lives per year in Montana.

Why Should Seat Belts Be A Primary Offense

According to the MDT Vision Zero report of the 2020 Traffic Safety Factsheet there were more than 200 fatalities and out of 132 occupants, 108 of those involved in the crashes were unrestrained inside the vehicle. Out of those 108 73 were ejected outside of the vehicle.

Get our free mobile app

READ MORE: This Montana Highway Sees The Most Fatal Accidents Each Year

Think about those numbers if there was more incentive for people to wear their seatbelts.

Where do you stand on this? Should Montana implement a primary offense for seat belt usage? Let us know in the App Chat!