roadwise.Open study app

Ohio driving lesson · Before You Drive

Safety belts & air bags

A 3-minute lesson from the Ohio course. Read the rules and examples, follow the handbook page references, and check your understanding before you move on.

Study this lesson in the app Back to the course
Read time
3 minutes
Course unit
Before You Drive
Checkpoint questions
6
Source pages
9

Belts and air bags are a team. The belt keeps you in position; the air bag cushions you. Worn wrong, a belt can itself cause serious internal injuries — so fit matters as much as buckling up.

Know the rule

Ohio's mandatory safety belt law requires drivers and front-seat occupants of most passenger vehicles to wear safety belts on Ohio roadways.

Handbook p. 9 ↗

Know the rule

For drivers under 18, occupants are limited to the number of safety belts originally installed, and all occupants must wear them.

Handbook p. 9 ↗

Air bag

A supplemental restraint designed to work best in combination with safety belts. Together they reduce the chance your head and upper body strike the vehicle interior.

Handbook p. 9 ↗

Know the rule

Wear your safety belt even if the vehicle has air bags, and make sure all passengers use belts or child restraints.

Handbook p. 9 ↗

How to wear the belt correctly:

  • Across bony areas — shoulders and hips
  • Shoulder belt across the shoulder and chest with minimal, if any, slack
  • Never under the arm or behind the back — this could cause serious internal injuries
  • Lap belt snug and low across the hips, or you could slide out of it in a crash
Handbook p. 9 ↗
Proper seat belt fit
Proper belt fit: shoulder belt mid-chest and shoulder, lap belt on upper thighs

Know the rule

Read your vehicle owner's manual for specific information about the air bags in your vehicle.

Handbook p. 9 ↗

Put it into practice

A 17-year-old driver offers rides to five friends in a car that came with five belts. Only four friends can come: the driver plus passengers can't exceed the five belts originally installed, and everyone must be buckled.

Check your understanding

Read the question, decide on an answer, then open it to check the explanation. These are Roadwise study questions based on the source handbook.

Who is required by Ohio law to wear a safety belt?
  1. Only the driver
  2. Only rear-seat passengers
  3. Drivers and front-seat occupants
  4. Only occupants under age 18

Answer: Drivers and front-seat occupants

Ohio's mandatory belt law requires drivers and front-seat occupants of most passenger vehicles to buckle up.

Handbook p. 9 ↗
For drivers under 18, how many total occupants can a vehicle carry?
  1. No more than 4 regardless of belts
  2. Unlimited, as long as the driver is belted
  3. No more than 2 passengers
  4. No more than the number of belts

Answer: No more than the number of belts

For drivers under 18, occupants cannot exceed the number of safety belts originally installed, and all must wear them.

Handbook p. 9 ↗
How should a shoulder belt be worn?
  1. Across the shoulder and chest, with minimal slack
  2. Under the arm for comfort
  3. Behind the back
  4. Loosely, to allow movement

Answer: Across the shoulder and chest, with minimal slack

The shoulder belt should be worn across the shoulder and chest with minimal, if any, slack — never under the arm or behind the back.

Handbook p. 9 ↗
What is the purpose of an air bag, according to the handbook?
  1. A full replacement for safety belts
  2. A supplement to safety belts
  3. Protection only in rear-end crashes
  4. Protection only for unbelted occupants

Answer: A supplement to safety belts

Air bags are supplemental restraints designed to work best in combination with safety belts.

Handbook p. 9 ↗
Why is it important to keep the lap belt snug and low across your hips?
  1. So the air bag deploys faster
  2. So you can reach the pedals more easily
  3. So you don't slide out of it in a crash
  4. So the shoulder belt can stay loose

Answer: So you don't slide out of it in a crash

A lap belt that's not snug and low could let you slide out of the belt in a crash, causing injury or death.

Handbook p. 9 ↗
A driver under 18 has a car with 5 safety belts installed and wants to carry 5 passengers. What does the law require?
  1. The extra passenger may share a belt
  2. One passenger must stay behind
  3. Only front-seat riders need belts
  4. It's fine if the extra rider sits in back

Answer: One passenger must stay behind

For drivers under 18, occupants (including the driver) cannot exceed the number of safety belts originally installed, and all must wear them.

Handbook p. 9 ↗
Take the lesson checkpoint in the app

More in Before You Drive

All Ohio lessons