DoNotPay Uncovers: How Much Is a Seatbelt Ticket in GA?
The authorities’ dedication to road safety resulted in 90.7% of motor vehicle occupants using a seatbelt in Georgia in 2019. This state is a participant in the Click It or Ticket and other media campaigns that reinforce seatbelt safety awareness.
Despite the government’s effort, there are instances when you forget to buckle up or an officer issues a ticket by error. Such situations are followed by a burning question—how much is a seatbelt ticket in GA?
Our simple guide will tell you everything about seatbelt rules, regulations, and the consequences of not respecting them. Learn how much you’ll need to pay if you don’t buckle up in GA and what you need to do to get a wrongly issued ticket dismissed.
The Law About Seatbelt Tickets in Georgia—General Info
Georgia is one of the states that enforce a primary law for seatbelts—the police officer can pull you over for not wearing a seatbelt even if you don’t make any other traffic offense.
The Georgia seatbelt regulations you should know are as follows:
- All front seat motor vehicle occupants must have a safety belt at all times
- Passengers older than 17 don’t need to wear seatbelts when sitting in the back
- Passengers who are 17 years old or younger need to be restrained no matter where they sit
In terms of child seatbelt laws, this is what you must know:
- Children who are eight years old or older can sit in the front seat
- Children under eight years must be seated in the rear—with the exception when no back seats are available
- Infants, toddlers, and children who are seven years old and younger—and under four feet and nine inches tall—must use an appropriate child safety restraint system
Driving children under 18 in the open-bed of a pickup truck also violates the Georgia safety seat laws, and the driver will be punished.
To learn more about regulations for children, check out our Georgia child seatbelt laws guide.
How Much Is a Seatbelt Ticket in Georgia?
The fine for not respecting the seatbelt laws in Georgia depends on:
- Who is not wearing a seatbelt
- Whether the ticket is issued for the first time or not
You can revise the penalties for different seatbelt violations in the table below:
The Unbuckled Occupant Is: | The Fine Is: |
---|---|
The driver | $15 |
An adult passenger | $15 |
A passenger who is a minor | $25 |
A child younger than eight years of age—first offense | $50 |
A child younger than eight years of age—second offense | $100 |
With each subsequent seatbelt violation, the fine will rise.
When it comes to who pays the cost for breaking the regulations, here is the answer:
- If the passenger is older than 18, he or she pays the fine
- If the passenger is a minor, the driver is responsible for covering the costs
Georgia Seatbelt Ticket Points
Getting a seatbelt ticket in Georgia won’t affect only your wallet. Forgetting or rejecting to put a safety belt on isn’t a moving violation, but there can be repercussions regarding your driving record.
This state is one of many that use a point system to reflect the driver’s behavior on the road. If you violate the child safety restraint, you’ll get:
- One penalty point for the first offense
- Two penalty points for subsequent offenses
Those who collect 15 points in 24 months will need to say goodbye to their license for some time.
As they’ll be set in your driving record, the penalty points will affect your insurance rate as well. A seatbelt ticket is a minor infraction, but you might need to pay up to four percent more to the insurer.
How To Avoid Paying the Seatbelt Fine in GA
Not paying the fine isn’t the best way to go about the seatbelt ticket. The fees will mount on top of the existing cost. A more serious outcome is the court issuing a bench warrant and the Georgia Department of Driver Services (DDS) suspending your license.
Want to keep the ticket off your driving history? You should contest the citation. This is an option in cases when you:
- Show reasonable doubt that the law enforcement officer issued a ticket by a mistake
- Present a due diligence defense that proves how you had a valid and legally acceptable reason for not wearing a safety belt—for example, driving in reverse, medical exemption, and similar
To overturn a ticket, you need to build your case. You can do this on your own, hire a lawyer, or go for the option that takes away the responsibility without the hefty price—.
Build Your Defense Without Breaking a Sweat With DoNotPay
Our nifty app can help you dismiss a ticket hassle-free. We can auto-generate a tailor-made appeal letter. The whole process will be over in a couple of minutes—including mailing the request because we can do that for you.
To test out DoNotPay’s efficiency, and:
- Choose the Seatbelt Ticket product
- Snap a pic of your seatbelt ticket
- Tell us who got the ticket and which argument you want to use to overturn it
With DoNotPay, you are only a few steps away from sending your appeal letter to the authorities.
Do you want to know how much the fines are in other places? Our guides can help you:
Ohio | Mississippi | California |
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Louisiana | Arkansas | Texas |
With our extensive learning center, you can stay up to date with seatbelt laws in all states:
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As a multifaceted app, DoNotPay creates solutions to numerous problems. Check out the table below and get to know a fragment of what our app can do:
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