Seatbelt use drive nets 134,000 violators, P180M in fines last year

DOTr Asec. Vigor Mendoza II —File photo

MANILA, Philippines — The first thing a driver must do upon entering the vehicle is to wear a seat belt. Failure to do so can cost as much as P1,000 for the first offense, P2,000 for a second violation, and a stiff P5,000 fine plus license suspension for succeeding infractions.

This was learned the hard way by the more than 134,000 motorists apprehended nationwide in 2024 for violation of Republic Act No. 8750, or the Seat Belts Use Act of 1999, the Land Transportation Office (LTO) said on Wednesday.

In a statement, Transportation Assistant Secretary Vigor Mendoza II, who heads the LTO, said the “aggressive” enforcement of the law on the use of seat belt also resulted in the collection of P179.9 million in fines from the violators.

Per area

Of the 134,147 apprehended for violating RA 8750 from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, 2024, 124,712 already settled the penalties, 53 were contesting the violation, and the rest still have to settle the fines.

Based on the agency’s data, LTO-Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon) had the most number of apprehended seat belt law violators with 32,485; followed by LTO-Central Luzon with 10,774, and LTO-Central Visayas, 10,270.

“This is proof that we are serious in implementing this law. If before they could still get away with it, now they can’t anymore, especially that we are embarking on an aggressive campaign for the use of seatbelt this year,” Mendoza noted.

Signs also a must

“So we appeal to our motorists to strictly follow the law because as our Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista has been saying, this is for their safety and that this is part of the government’s efforts to ensure the safety of all road users,” he added.

Section 12 of RA 8750 imposes a fine of P100 up to P1,000 for the first violation on the driver who fails to wear the prescribed seat belt device or who fails to require his passengers to wear seat belts.

The fine for the second violation is P200 to P2,000, while the third and subsequent violations will be penalized P500 to P5,000 and the driver’s license suspended for a week.

The law also penalizes drivers and operators of public utility vehicles who fail to post appropriate signage instructing front seat passengers to wear seat belts, as well as the manufacturer, assembler, importer and distributor of vehicles found without seat belt devices installed prior to their sale. —Jerome Aning