DC requires seat belts in taxi cabs, but I do not think they mean back seats, only front seats. Why? Because I have never heard of anyone getting a $50 fine for no seat belt in the back seat. Have you?
Then why do taxi cabs have these seat belt stickers in the back windows?
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9 Responses to “Do You Seat Belt in Cabs?”
January 28th, 2009 at 3:49 pm
I wear a seat belt in cabs, and not because of the threat of a fine. Taxis aren’t somehow exempt from the laws of physics which can lead to you being killed or maimed in an accident in your own car.
January 28th, 2009 at 5:16 pm
Starting Oct 2000, Taxis can be fined $100 for failing to post a required seat belt use sign.
Back seat law is a secondary violation, meaning law enforcement cannot stop a vehicle solely for a seat belt infraction. If a driver is pulled over for another reason, non-buckled occupants of the back seat could face a $10 fine.
January 28th, 2009 at 10:27 pm
Mariana,
Then why does the sticker say “$50 fine” if its $100 or $10?
January 29th, 2009 at 12:04 am
A cab driver is fined $100 for failing to display the sticker. As to $10 or $50-either DC TaxiCab commission rule book or the sticker is outdated.
January 29th, 2009 at 10:18 am
I don’t think I’ve ever even *seen* seatbelts in the backseat of a cab.
January 29th, 2009 at 11:18 am
I’ve seen them, but the only time I’ve used them is to strap in my happy little Hanalei’s car seat
January 29th, 2009 at 3:53 pm
@mariana The driver is fined $100 for failure to display the sticker. The sticker seems to imply that it’s the passenger who is fined for not wearing the seatbelt.
January 29th, 2009 at 7:45 pm
And the winner is–Police. If there’s no sticker they fine the driver, if there’s a sticker-the passenger. With all this said i never heard of anybody being fined for not wearing seatbelts on the back seat of a taxi.
January 30th, 2009 at 11:38 am
Hm. A driver told me a few weeks ago that he was pulled over and the rider was fined $50. He said DC police were really cracking down on it. Maybe he was bs-ing me, but drivers usually know what’s up.