Despite our best efforts to warn drivers of the upcoming seat belt campaign, more than 1,100 Minnesotans were cited during law enforcement’s recent “Click It Or Ticket” campaign.
The most recent campaign ran from September 17-23. More than 275 agencies across Minnesota participated in the program, which resulted in 1,125 seat belt citations and 39 child restraint citations. Despite the high number of citations, Michael Hanson, Minnesota Department of Public Safety Director, seemed encouraged by the numbers compared to previous campaigns.
“What we do is a couple of times over the course of the year we will focus our enforcement efforts on those seat belt and occupant restraint violations that occur out there now thankfully they’re getting fewer and fewer as more people have learned the law and come compliant with it,” said Hanson.
Seat Belt Fines Can Add Up
Minnesota law requires that drivers and passengers in all seating positions must wear seat belts or be in the correct child restraint. A ticket costs $25, but all in expenses can exceed $100 with court fees. Children are required to be in a child safety seat until they are 4 feet 9 inches or at least 8 years old, whichever comes first.
Not only can buckling up save you money, but it can also save your life.
“Roughly a third of all fatalities are the direct result of somebody not having that seat belt on and so even though in Minnesota our compliance rate is 94 percent the fact that six percent or six and a half percent of folks who haven’t figured out how to take two seconds to put that seat belt on they are represented in a third of our fatalities,” said Hanson. “And really the whole idea of it is to continue to raise the awareness of the need for everybody to make what is really the smartest decision that any of us can make when we get in the car and that’s to put the seat belt on.”
At the time the campaign ended, there had been 57 unbelted traffic fatalities recorded in Minnesota in 2023. That puts us well on pace to surpass last year’s total of 61, so there’s still work to be done when it comes to buckling up.
Protect yourself and protect your wallet by buckling up every time you’re in a vehicle, but if you or someone you know ends up in trouble and in need of a criminal defense lawyer, reach out to Avery and the team at Appelman Law Firm today at (952) 224-2277.
