Interpretation ID: nht72-3.41

DATE: 02/24/72

FROM: AUTHOR UNAVAILABLE; Richard B. Dyson; NHTSA

TO: Lempco Industries, Inc.

TITLE: FMVSS INTERPRETATION

TEXT: This is in reply to your letter of January 18, 1972, on the subject of an automobile dealer's obligations regarding seatbelts in new cars.

Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 208 requires seatbelts to be installed at all seating positions. Under the requirements of the National Motor Vehicle and Traffic Safety Act, which we administer, it is a violation of the law to sell a vehicle that does not conform to an applicable standard. A dealer may not, therefore, sell an automobile that does not have the required number of seatbelts.

Although the act does not prevent the purchaser of a vehicle from removing the belts, after he has completed the purchase, we strongly advise him to leave the belts in and to wear them. A dealer who removes the belts after he has sold the vehicle does not violate the law, but he does his customer a disservice.