Safety belts — New Mexico Permit Test

Safety belts on the New Mexico permit test — 4 rules, each with the reason behind it and a question on it while it is fresh.

The rules

In New Mexico it is illegal to drive without wearing a safety belt.

A belt keeps you in your seat in a crash, so you are far less likely to be hurt or killed.

In the State of New Mexico, it is illegal to drive without wearing safety belts.

New Mexico Driver Manual, p.3

Before you drive, make sure all your passengers are using safety belts or child restraints.

One loose rider can fly around in a crash and hurt themselves and everyone else in the car.

Before you drive, always fasten your safety belts and make sure all your passengers are using safety belts or child restraints.

New Mexico Driver Manual, p.3

If your vehicle has a two-part belt, wear both the lap belt and the shoulder belt.

Each part holds a different part of your body, so wearing just one leaves you open to harm.

If your vehicle has a two-part safety belt system, be sure to wear both the lap belt and the shoulder belt.

New Mexico Driver Manual, p.3

If you have an automatic shoulder belt, buckle your lap belt as well.

With only the shoulder belt on, you could slide out under it in a crash and be badly hurt.

If you have an automatic shoulder belt, be sure to buckle your lap belt as well.

New Mexico Driver Manual, p.3

On the test

Is it legal in New Mexico to drive without wearing a safety belt?

No, it is against the law. A belt keeps you in your seat in a crash, so you are far less likely to be hurt or killed. New Mexico Driver Manual, p.3: “In the State of New Mexico, it is illegal to drive without wearing safety belts.”

How this works

Most practice tests hand you a bank of questions and leave the manual somewhere else. This one puts them together.

You read one law and the reason behind it, then answer a question on that law while it is still fresh. Get it right and you move on; get it wrong and you have found the gap while it is cheap to fix, not on the morning of the exam.

Learning one rule at a time, and proving it immediately, is what turns a manual you skimmed into something you actually know — and it makes studying feel like getting somewhere rather than like waiting to find out.

What it costs

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All New Mexico permit topics

Where these come from

Every rule here is checked against New Mexico Driver Manual, published by the New Mexico Taxation and Revenue Department, and against the state code itself. Last checked 2026-10-04.