Passenger safety: seat belts, child restraints and supervision
This domain tests your legal responsibility for the people behind you and the practical supervision that goes with minibus work: belts, child seats, load security, boarding and evacuation.
Who is responsible for what
- Seat belts fitted in the vehicle must be used, in every seat, including the rear rows of a minibus. One person per belt.
- In Denmark the driver is responsible for ensuring that passengers under 15 are correctly restrained; passengers of 15 and over are responsible for themselves.
- The driver must not be distracted by passengers - agree behaviour before departure rather than turning round to deal with it.
Children
- Children under 135 cm must use an approved child restraint matched to their weight and height - infant seat, child seat or booster as appropriate. Rear-facing as long as the seat allows.
- Never a child on a lap, never the diagonal belt under the arm or behind the back. Deactivate the front passenger airbag if a rear-facing seat is used there.
- A child over 135 cm may use the ordinary three-point belt, with the diagonal over shoulder and chest and the lap low across the hips, and the headrest adjusted to the top of the ears.
Supervision, boarding and luggage
- Count passengers when they board and when they leave; supervise children at stops, use hazard lights where appropriate, and never let anyone board or leave on the traffic side if it can be avoided.
- No standing passengers in a minibus; everyone seated and belted.
- Luggage in the boot or secured: heavy items low, nothing loose in the cabin that could become a projectile under braking.
- Keep emergency exits, the extinguisher and the first-aid kit accessible and show regular passengers how the emergency door release works.
Worked example
A 4-year-old (about 100 cm, 16 kg) and a 12-year-old (148 cm) travel in a nine-seat minibus with three-point belts throughout. The 4-year-old needs an approved child seat in the weight/height class, fitted to the belt or ISOFIX as designed. The 12-year-old is over 135 cm and may use the standard belt - but the belt must sit on the shoulder and hips, not the neck or stomach, and the headrest must be raised. Reclining the seat back to make the belt "fit" is not acceptable.
Traps that cost marks
- Belt under the arm or behind the back to stop it rubbing.
- Thick winter coats compressing under the belt in a collision.
- Assuming a tall 11-year-old needs no restraint check.
- Heavy bags loose on the rear seat.