Seat belts and child seats — Indiana Permit Test

Indiana law requires every person in a moving vehicle that has seat belts to wear one.

In a crash, a belt keeps you in your seat instead of being thrown into the windshield or out of the car.

Indiana law requires a driver and all passengers to use seat belts at all times when a vehicle is in operation.

A seat belt must still be worn in a car that has air bags.

An air bag works with a belt. Without the belt you can slide into the bag as it opens and be hurt by it.

A seat belt must be used even in a vehicle with one or more air bags.

The driver should sit at least 12 inches back from the steering wheel.

An air bag opens with great force. Sitting back gives it room to inflate before it reaches you.

Driver should sit at least 12 inches away from the steering wheel.

A seat belt should be worn low on the hips and flat across the collar bone.

Those are strong bones that can take the force of a crash. A belt across the belly or neck can cause injury.

Everyone should wear their seat belts low on the hips and flat across the collar bone.

A driver or passenger who should not wear a belt for medical reasons is excused only with written documentation from a physician.

The exception is real but narrow, so you must carry a doctor's note to show it applies to you.

Drivers or passengers who should not wear a seat belt for medical reasons, provided they have written documentation of the medical reasons from a physician

Passengers younger than 8 must be secured in a child restraint system such as a car seat or booster seat.

Adult belts do not fit small bodies. A car seat or booster holds a child where the belt can protect them.

Passengers younger than eight years of age are required by law to be properly secured in a child restraint system such as a child car seat or booster seat.

The National Safety Council recommends that children younger than 12 ride in the back seat of a car with a passenger air bag.

An opening air bag hits hard enough to kill a child, so the back seat is the safer place.

If a car is equipped with an air bag on the passenger side, the National Safety Council recommends putting children younger than 12 years of age in the back seat.

Who must wear a seat belt in a moving vehicle in Indiana?

The driver and every passenger. In a crash, a belt keeps you in your seat instead of being thrown into the windshield or out of the car. Indiana Driver's Manual, p.55: “Indiana law requires a driver and all passengers to use seat belts at all times when a vehicle is in operation.”