Not sure quite where to post this.......debate regarding child restraint and seat belts in cars - can Mumsnet jury please help!

[Mumbojumbo]

Ok, here's the situation.
DH has an old sports car which doesn't have seat belts fitted - dates from 1963 pre seat belt regulation.
We've never taken the boys in the car (because it hasn't got seat belts or any method of attaching the appropriate child seat). I said to DH/DS tonight that it was against the law for a minor to travel without being strapped in, in the proper child seat. DH said it wasn't against the law if the car didn't have seat belts fitted in the first place. I then refered him to my first comment about it being illegal to travel with children not strapped in. And if the car hasn't got seat belts then it's illegal. DH still thinks it isn't and the law doesn't cover cars pre-seat belts.
I think I'm right. Can anyone set the record straight here.

if a cars does not have seatbelts fitted due to age then they must be fitted in accordance to traffic safety laws I guess it is in addition to this now all children under a certain height/ weight must use an apprpriate booster/ car seat not sure exactly but ur local police station of even school can help as they all have all the info even try the library hope this helps

Illegal, illegal, illegal!

Is the argument about whether its law or whether you can put ds in the car? Sounds like the former.

I think the recent law on child restraint says all kids must travel in the appropriate car/booster seat, except in case of an emergency...(not word for word but get the general gist?)

I think I've found what I'm looking for:

Think Road Safety - New Law

That clarifies it perfectly!
Thanks for the replies.

It's not illegal. It's covered under the exemptions for children aged between 3 and 12. Under 3 there are no exemptions (unless it's a taxi!)

The law is :

Children under three can't travel in a car that does not have seat belts fitted.

Children over three are only permitted to travel in the rear of a car that doesn't have belts fitted.

see here

That website misses all of the exemptions MJ.

In old cars with no seat belts - children between three and 12 may travel in the back seat, though the Department for Transport points out that this is "not safe"

So, to summarise.... both of you are wrong! (Don't let him get one over you... point out the under 3 thing )

Grrr, he wouldn't accept it until I found an answer for him off the Thames Valley Police Web site which mentioned the words "classic car", so I stuck this under his nose.

Q: Do the rules apply in cars not fitted with seatbelts?
A: Children under 3 must use the appropriate child restraint in all cases - there is no exemption for them in vehicles with no seatbelts in the rear, such as for example, classic cars. However, children from their 3rd birthday up to 135 cm in height (or 12th birthday, whichever they reach first) may be carried in the rear of vehicles without restraints if seat belts are not available but they can only go in the front if they use the correct child seat or booster.

I rest my case!

PS In all of this I forgot to mention, the car only has 2 seats - no rear seats either!

Doh!

could you get seat belts fitted? We have a VW 1970s camper van and got it with no seatbelts in the back. We took it to a VW garage and they fitted two seat belts so our sons can travel while being strapped in. We were given a choice of lap or shoulder seat belts.

Yes, it think it's possible to get seat belts fitted. Only issue is then - there are 4 of us in the family - so who gets left at home! Don't think there is a solution to that......or perhaps there is....