FOI 12326
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST REFERENCE NO: HRC0012326
I write in connection with your request for information which was received on 4th June 2026. Please find below the response to your request:
- Please provide the total number of recorded driving offences involving a child passenger not being properly restrained in a vehicle (including no seatbelt or no car seat) in the calendar years 2023, 2024 and 2025.
- Please provide the total number of fines, fixed penalty notices, warnings and prosecutions issued for these offences in the calendar years 2023, 2024 and 2025.
- Please provide a breakdown of these offences by the age of the child involved, if available, in the calendar years 2023, 2024 and 2025.
Reply
Your request for information has been considered in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (“the Act”), and I am not obliged to provide the information requested.
S.12(1) of the Act states that a public authority is not obliged to comply with a request for information if the authority estimates that the cost of complying with the request would exceed the “appropriate limit”. For police forces in England and Wales, the "appropriate limit" is £450 or 18 hours of work as set by the Freedom of Information (Fees and Appropriate Limit) Regulations 2004.
The information you have requested for question 3 is not available in a readily retrievable format. In order to ascertain whether the information you have requested is held would take in excess of 18 hours as each record would have to be checked individually.
In accordance with s.17(5) of the Act, this acts as a Refusal Notice.
However, In accordance with Section 16 of the Act I have a duty to provide advice and assistance in relation to your request and can provide the information requested for questions 1 & 2 as this was retrieved during our initial research. This should not be taken as a precedent that additional information would be supplied outside of the time/fees legislation for any subsequent requests
Seat belt offences by year
|
CCCJS |
Offence description |
2023 |
2024 |
2025 |
|
RT88510 |
Drive a motor vehicle on a road with a child under 14 years in front passenger seat not wearing a seat belt |
8 |
5 |
9 |
|
RT88511 |
Drive a motor vehicle not fitted with a rear seat belt on a road when child under 12 and not 150cm tall seated in rear |
1 |
1 |
2 |
|
RT88512 |
Ride in the front passenger seat of a motor vehicle being driven on a road whilst not wearing a seatbelt |
76 |
44 |
56 |
|
RT88513 |
Ride in a rear passenger seat of a motor vehicle being driven on a road whilst not wearing a seatbelt |
21 |
14 |
36 |
|
RT88514 |
Drive a motor vehicle on a road with a child passenger under 3 years seated in the rear not wearing a seat belt |
12 |
5 |
10 |
|
RT88515 |
Drive a motor vehicle on a road with a child passenger seat in the rear aged 3 to 13 years not wearing a seat belt |
18 |
23 |
25 |
|
RT88516 |
Drive a motor vehicle on a road with a child in a rear facing restraining device on front seat - air bag not deactivated |
1 |
- For each year, the disposals are as follows:
|
Year |
course attended |
fixed penalty accepted |
sent to court |
|
2023 |
34 |
66 |
2 |
|
2024 |
25 |
33 |
4 |
|
2025 |
42 |
54 |
7 |