Seatbelt admissibility bill heard in Senate Committee

The Senate Transportation Committee today heard SB 321, sponsored by Senator Dan Hegeman

, a bill that allows evidence of seatbelt usage to be considered by a judge or jury and removes the current limit of a 1% reduction in award if a plaintiff fails to wear a seatbelt.

AIM’s Planning and Committee of Associated Industries of Missouri has voted to support this legislation that allows disclosure of evidence that a person involved in an accident was not wearing their seatbelt at the time of the accident and allowing the judge or jury to reduce any plaintiff’s recovery by any amount. This issue will be further considered by the AIM Executive Committee, but in the meantime, AIM supports the bill.

Associated Industries of Missouri was the only statewide business group to testify in support of manufacturers on this important issue. The Committee expressed some reservations and changes may be made to limit the disclosure to lawsuits involving manufacturers of vehicles.

AIM will keep you posted of progress on the bill.