WASHINGTON, DC—New vehicles are safer than they’ve ever been, but there’s always room for improvement. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recently finalized a new rule requiring seatbelt warning systems for both front and rear passengers (PDF), which is expected to save 50 lives and prevent over 500 injuries annually. This rule amends Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 208, “Occupant crash protection,” to require seat belt warnings for both the driver and front passenger seats.

While many models already have such warnings available, only the driver seat was previously required to sound an alarm. New requirements apply to passenger cars, trucks, and multipurpose vehicles up to 10,000 pounds, excluding school buses.

Starting on September 1, 2026, automakers must equip new models with enhanced front seatbelt warning systems. The requirements for rear passengers kick in a year later on September 1, 2027. Manufacturers may comply with the rule before these deadlines.

“Wearing a seat belt is one of the easiest and most effective ways to prevent injury and death in a vehicle crash,” said NHTSA Chief Counsel Adam Raviv in a statement. “While seat belt use has improved for decades, there’s still more we can do to make sure everyone buckles up. These new requirements will help to increase seat belt use, especially for rear seat passengers, by enhancing reminders for vehicle occupants to buckle up.”

NHTSA’s data from 2022 shows that roughly half of all passenger vehicle occupants killed in crashes were unbelted. Front-seat passengers have a seatbelt usage rate of 91.6 percent, while rear passengers lag behind at 81.7 percent. Seat belt warning systems, also called reminder systems, use visual and audible alerts to encourage seat belt use.

This article was written with the assistance of AI and reviewed by a human editor.

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