Seat belts are one of the simplest yet most effective safety features in any vehicle. These restraints are designed to keep you securely positioned during a collision, preventing you from being thrown against the interior of your car or ejected entirely. To ensure everyone uses these life-saving devices every time they are on the road, Missouri imposes strict seat belt laws for drivers and passengers alike.
Who Is Required to Wear a Seat Belt in Missouri?
Missouri’s seat belt law requires all drivers and front-seat passengers to wear seat belts while the vehicle is in operation. Drivers bear the responsibility for ensuring that any passenger under 16 years old is properly restrained, regardless of where they are sitting in the vehicle.
The state has additional requirements for younger children:
- Children under four years old or weighing less than 40 pounds must ride in an age-appropriate car seat.
- Children between four and seven who weigh under 40 pounds need a car seat or booster seat.
- Once a child reaches age eight, weighs at least 80 pounds, or stands 4’9” tall or taller, they can transition to using a regular seat belt.
A handful of exceptions exist. Mail carriers performing their delivery duties don’t need to wear seat belts. Drivers of vehicles manufactured before 1968—which may lack seat belts entirely—are exempt. If you have a medical condition that prevents you from safely wearing a seat belt, you are not required to wear one, but you need documentation from your doctor. Agricultural workers operating vehicles on private property also receive an exemption.
Potential Consequences of Seat Belt Violations
Missouri treats seat belt violations as secondary offenses, meaning law enforcement cannot pull you over solely for not wearing one. Officers can only cite you for a seat belt violation after stopping you for another traffic infraction. Adults face a $10 fine, while failing to properly restrain a child carries a $50 penalty. Court costs are usually added to these base amounts.
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How Seat Belt Use Affects Personal Injury Claims
Your seat belt use—or lack thereof—can impact any injury claim following an accident. Insurance companies in Missouri may invoke the seat belt defense to argue that your injuries would have been less severe had you been properly restrained.
Missouri follows a pure comparative negligence system, which allows you to recover damages even if you are partially at fault. Your final settlement will be reduced by your percentage of fault.
Missouri is among the few states permitting defendants to introduce evidence that plaintiffs were not wearing a seat belt. However, you can only be assigned a single percentage point of fault for not wearing a seat belt in a Kansas City car accident claim. While 1% might seem negligible, it directly reduces your compensation, and when you’re facing medical bills and lost wages, every dollar matters.
Protect Your Rights After an Accident—Contact Us Today
Whether you were wearing a seat belt or not, you still have the right to recover compensation after a car accident. However, the defense will scrutinize every detail to reduce what they owe you. Your recovery depends on having someone who will fight for your interests from day one.
Dollar, Burns, Becker, and Hershewe protects accident victims from tactics designed to minimize their compensation. We build cases that focus on the defendant’s wrongdoing so that our clients can secure the resources they need to move forward. If you were injured, contact us at (816) 876-2600 for a free case review with a Missouri car accident lawyer.