Interpretation ID: 7653
General Manager
Unique Motors and Upholstery, Inc.
407 E. Ft. Lowell
Tucson, AZ 85705
Dear Mr. Hawkes:
This responds to your letter of August 6, 1992 requesting information on adding lap belts to a mini bus. During an August 27th phone conversation with Mary Versailles of my staff, you clarified that the bus to which you are referring is a 26-passenger 1987 Ford Econoline (6-wheeler) that is not a school bus and that has already been used on the public roads. I am pleased to have this opportunity to explain our law and regulations to you.
The National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act (the Safety Act; 15 U.S.C. 1381 et seq.) authorizes this agency to issue Federal motor vehicle safety standards applicable to new motor vehicles and new items of motor vehicle equipment. Section 108(a)(1)(A) of the Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 1397(a)(1)(A)) prohibits any person from manufacturing, introducing into commerce, selling, or importing any new motor vehicle or item of motor vehicle equipment unless the vehicle or equipment item is in conformity with all applicable safety standards.
NHTSA has exercised its authority to establish four safety standards that may be relevant to the occupant protection that must be provided at passenger seats in buses. The first of these is Standard No. 207, Seating Systems, which establishes strength and other performance requirements for vehicle seats. However, this standard excludes passenger seats on buses from these performance requirements. The second potentially relevant standard is Standard No. 208, Occupant Crash Protection (49 CFR 571.208), which sets forth requirements for occupant protection at the various seating positions in vehicles. For buses manufactured before September 1, 1991, Standard No. 208 required that a seat belt be installed at the driver's seating position only. In other words, no belts were required to be installed at the passengers' seating positions in this bus when it was a new vehicle.
The third relevant safety standard is Standard No. 209, Seat Belt Assemblies (49 CFR 571.209), which sets forth strength, elongation, webbing width, durability, and other requirements for seat belt assemblies. This standard applies to all seat belt assemblies as separate items of motor vehicle equipment, regardless of whether the belts are installed as original equipment in a motor vehicle or sold as replacements. Hence, the seat belt originally installed at the driver's seating position and any other seat belt assemblies that were installed in the bus had to be certified as complying with Standard No. 209.
The fourth and final potentially relevant standard is Standard No. 210, Seat Belt Assembly Anchorages (49 CFR 571.210), which establishes strength and location requirements for seat belt anchorages For buses manufactured before September 1, 1991, Standard No. 210 required that anchorages for a seat belt be installed at the driver's seating position only. Hence, no seat belt anchorages were required to be installed at the passengers' seating positions in this bus when it was a new vehicle.
Federal law requires that a vehicle comply with all applicable safety standards at the time of the vehicle's first purchase for purposes other than resale; i.e., the first retail sale of the vehicle. After that first purchase, the only provision in Federal law that affects a vehicle's continuing compliance with an applicable safety standard is set forth in section 108(a)(2)(A) of the Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 1397(a)(2)(A)). That section provides that:
No manufacturer, distributor, dealer, or motor vehicle repair business shall knowingly render inoperative, in whole or in part, any device or element of design installed on or in a motor vehicle ... in compliance with an applicable Federal motor vehicle safety standard.
Any violation of this "render inoperative" prohibition would subject the violator to a potential civil penalty of up to $1,000 for each violation. Your company is subject to this prohibition, because you are a motor vehicle repair business. However, because the bus in question was not required to have seat belts or seat belt anchorages at the passenger seating positions and those passenger seating positions were not required to meet the performance requirements for seats, the voluntary installation of belts and anchorages at the passenger seating positions would not violate the "render inoperative" provision of the Safety Act, regardless of where the anchorages were located.
As noted above, replacement belts must be certified as complying with Standard No. 209. Hence, to avoid violating the Safety Act, you must ensure that the seat belts your company voluntarily installs at the passenger seating positions in this bus are certified as complying with all applicable requirements of Standard No. 209.
Despite the absence of such a requirement in Federal law, I urge you to exercise care when installing belts in the passenger seats of this bus. As noted above, the passenger seats of this bus were not required to meet the generally applicable seat performance requirements, and they were not required to be equipped with any seat belts or anchorages. The belts you propose to install will fail to achieve their intended purpose if they separate from the vehicle or separate the seats from the vehicle frame in a crash. I recommend that you contact the original manufacturer of the bus to learn if it can offer guidance on how to best attach seat belts at the passenger's position. Additionally, you may wish to consult a private attorney familiar with the law in the State of Arizona regarding potential liability in tort for your business in these circumstances. While such issues are beyond this agency's area of legal expertise, I note that every State provides for some degree of civil liability for consumer products and repair work.
I hope you find this information helpful. If you have any other questions, please contact Mary Versailles of my staff at this address or by phone at (202) 366-2992.
Sincerely,
Paul Jackson Rice Chief Counsel
ref:208#209#210 d:9/17/92