CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Motorists in West Virginia now have a choice to make when it comes to wearing their seat belt, either “Click It or Ticket.”
Beginning Tuesday, the Mountain State gets added to the growing list of states that have a primary enforcement of a seat belt law, meaning police can stop vehicles and write citations for failure to buckle up.
State Police Spokesperson Sgt. Michael Baylous said anyone who’s sitting in the front seat and anyone who’s under the age of eighteen sitting in the back seat has to be wearing a seat belt. If not, the driver alone risks getting pulled over and getting a ticket.
“As the driver your responsible for what’s going on inside that vehicle,” Baylous said.
Before this, not wearing a seat belt in West Virginia was a secondary offense which meant you had to first get cited for another offense, like speeding, to get a seat belt ticket. Baylous doesn’t see the change causing too many problems.
“We’re just not seeing a whole lot of people who are traveling without a seat belt,” he said. “We’ve had that secondary law in effect for some time now and it’s become rather common place that most people are wearing their seat belt .”
Including West Virginia, 32 states plus the District of Columbia have not wearing a seat belt as a primary offense. Seventeen states have secondary enforcement.
The seat belt law comes a little over a week after driving while using a hand held cell phone became a primary offense as well. Baylous said it’s all about making the roadways safer.
“We want to reduce the fatality within our state and we want to enhance highway safety,” he said.
A motorist getting cited for not wearing their seat belt will be looking at a $25 fine. There is no court costs tied to it.