Virginia Has Enacted A Backseat Passenger Law - Here's What That Means

The three-point seatbelt was patented in 1955 and issued as standard equipment on 1959 Volvos. Despite a report from the Missouri think tank MOST Policy Initiative reports that rear-seat belt usage cuts a person's risk of death in a crash by half, only 78% of back seat passengers wear them. That lags well behind the 90% figure for drivers and front seat passengers, a number that has been boosted by mandatory seat belt laws. A 2018 survey by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) pegged seat belt use among Americans at 91% in front and 72% in back, and found that many riders mistakenly think the rear seat is safer during crashes. Two out of five respondents said they don't buckle up in back because there's no law requiring it in their state. New Hampshire is the only state that doesn't mandate seat belt use for adults but 35 states, Washington D.C.,and four U.S. territories have primary enforcement for all passengers. That means police can stop a vehicle solely for a seatbelt violation. 

In 14 states including Kansas, Maryland, and New Jersey, seatbelt rules rely on secondary enforcement; an officer can only issue a ticket for an unbuckled adult if the driver has already committed another violation. Minors are covered under a separate set of laws, which also mandate the use of car seats for children under a certain age or size. Virginia is the latest state to pass a law requiring adults riding in back to wear seatbelts. State delegate Karen Keys-Gamarra co-sponsored the bill and told Fox 5 DC, "I think it'll save lives, "I mean, that's the bottom line." It became state law on July 1, 2025.

Keys-Gamarra also pointed out that "Unbelievably, Virginia has the lowest seatbelt usage in the nation" at 73% to the national average of 92%.Virginia's new backseat seat belt law HB2475 is nicknamed the "Christopher King Backseat Law" in memory of a recent high school graduate who was unbelted in the back seat when he was killed in a 2020 crash. Although Virginia already had strict font seatbelt laws, the same was not true for rear seat passengers until HB2475 went into effect, requiring adult passengers riding in the back seat to buckle up or get a ticket. Previously, only children under 18 years of age were required to use rear seatbelts in Virginia.

Virginia has chosen to implement the secondary enforcement mode for this law, which means a police officer cannot pull you over unless you commit another offense falling under primary enforcement. Examples of primary enforcement offenses include speeding, failure to signal, or driving a car with a broken tail light.

If rear-seat passengers are caught unbelted, the law mandates a fine of $25 for adults and $50 for improperly secured children. Exemptions are allowed for people with a documented medical condition, mail carriers delivering mail, licensed emergency responders like police or paramedics on duty, and anyone riding in a seat that's not equipped with a belt.