Defective Seat Belts

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Lap-Only Belts

As its name implies, a “lap-only” seatbelt goes across the occupant’s lap only and does not restrain the upper body.  Lap-only seat belts are considered to be two point occupant restraints because they are anchored to the vehicle in two places, specifically, on each side of the occupant’s hips.  This type of belt is commonly seen in the middle section of a bench seat, such as in a pick-up truck or mini-van.  Most experts consider the lap-only design to be defective because it fails to adequately protect a vehicle occupant in the event of a crash.  While federal law previously allowed vehicle manufacturers to install lap-only belts at some seat locations, that is no longer the case.  As of September 2007, federal law requires that all vehicle manufacturers provide three point safety belts at all passenger seat locations in new vehicles.   

Lap-only seatbelts do not meet either of the design objectives for seat belts mentioned above, i.e. restrain the occupant’s movement and disperse energy to a wide area.  Because it does not include a shoulder restraint, a lap-only belt will allow the occupant’s upper body to fold down or “jackknife” in a crash.  It also focuses the energy from a crash into a narrow area of the body at the lower part of the spine.  In a head-on collision, the body of a passenger restrained by a lap belt will hyperflex around the belt causing severe spinal cord injuries, head or brain injuries, and trauma to the abdomen.  

Vehicle manufacturers and engineers have known about the dangers of lap-only seat belts for decades.  In 1967, a Ford safety research engineer wrote the following in a confidential memo:

“[w]hen properly worn the three-point, diagonal shoulder belt system has been demonstrated to offer much greater protection to the vehicle occupant than does a single lap belt alone, since it prevents injury from jack knifing…Injuries…involving three-point systems would all have probably been much worse had the individuals been wearing…a lap belt only…Our conclusion…is that a properly worn, three-point belt system clearly protects the occupant better than a lap-only belt system.”

Despite this knowledge, manufacturers continued to install lap-only safety belts in their vehicles, often arguing in lawsuits that the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards allowed discretion in that regard.  While the federal standards now prohibit that practice, millions of vehicles with dangerous lap-only belts are still on American roads and highways.  

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