Interpretation ID: aiam4914
McCay & Criscuolo Suite 401 Three Greentree Centre Route 73 & Greentree Road Marlton
NJ 08053;
"Dear Mr. Baldwin: This responds to your September 25, 1991, letter i which you asked 'the specific date when 2-point seatbelts were outlawed.' Lap, or 2-point, belts have never been outlawed by this agency. Rather, 3-point, or lap/shoulder belts have been required at certain seating positions in certain vehicles. Lap belts are still permitted as the only occupant restraint at a seating position in all vehicles at some seating positions. Such seating positions include all seating positions that are not outboard seating positions and all seating positions that are not forward-facing. Your letter mentioned that you are specifically interested in this information for pending litigation regarding a 1984 passenger car convertible. Passenger car convertibles manufactured in 1984 were permitted to have lap belts installed at all seating positions. The following discussion should clarify NHTSA regulations regarding safety belts. S4.1.2 of Standard No. 208 gives vehicle manufacturers a choice of three options for providing occupant crash protection in passenger cars. Option 1, set forth in S4.1.2.1, requires vehicle manufacturers to provide automatic protection at the front outboard seating positions, lap or lap/shoulder safety belts at all other seating positions, and either meet the lateral crash protection and rollover requirements by means of automatic protection systems or have manual safety belts at the front outboard seating positions such that those positions comply with the occupant protection requirements when occupants are protected by both the safety belts and the automatic protection. Option 2, set forth in S4.1.2.2, requires vehicle manufacturers to provide a lap or lap/shoulder safety belt at every seating position, have automatic protection for the front outboard seats, and have a warning system for the safety belts provided. Option 3, set forth in S4.1.2.3, requires the manufacturer to install lap or lap/shoulder safety belts at every seating position and to have a warning system for those belts. Beginning on September 1, 1986, manufacturers were required to begin phasing-in the installation of automatic restraint systems, such as automatic belts and airbag systems, in their passenger cars. For example, S4.1.3.1 of Standard No. 208 required manufacturers to certify that at least ten percent of their passenger cars manufactured on or after September 1, 1986, and before September 1, 1987, complied with S4.1.2.1. S4.1.3.2 required 25 percent of passenger cars manufactured on or after September 1, 1987, and before September 1, 1988, to comply with S4.1.2.1, and S4.1.3.3 required 40 percent of passenger cars manufactured on or after September 1, 1988, and before September 1, 1989, to comply with S4.1.2.1. However, the agency temporarily excluded convertibles from the automatic restraint requirement during the phase-in period. This exclusion meant that convertibles did not have to be counted in the total passenger car production to determine the percentage of total passenger car production equipped with automatic restraints. Instead of automatic restraints, convertibles manufactured prior to September 1, 1989, were allowed to have either a manual lap or lap/shoulder belt at each seating position. All passenger cars, including convertibles, manufactured on or after September 1, 1989, must be certified as complying with S4.1.2.1. There are also currently requirements for lap/shoulder belts in some rear seating positions in convertibles. Again, however, these requirements would not have applied to the 1984 convertible involved in your litigation. For your information, S4.1.4 of Standard No. 208 includes additional requirements for forward-facing rear outboard seating positions in passenger cars. All passenger cars, except convertibles, manufactured on or after December 11, 1989, were required to have lap/shoulder belts at these seating positions. All convertibles manufactured on or after September 1, 1991, are required to have lap/shoulder belts at these positions. I hope this information is helpful. If you have any more questions about this issue, feel free to contact Mary Versailles of my office at this address or by telephone at (202) 366-2992. Sincerely, Paul Jackson Rice Chief Counsel";