Lichfield drivers and passengers who don’t belt up now face a heavier fine.
From today they will get a £60 fixed penalty ticket rather than the £30 ticket previously issued.
Staffordshire Police officers will be handing out the tickets following the national changes to improve road safety.
The increase will affect drivers, who are also legally responsible for any child passengers aged 13 or younger. Passengers aged 14 and over are personally responsible for ensuring they are wearing a seatbelt and are also subject to the revised fines.
Motorists with illegal number plates will also now be liable to a £60 ticket rather than £30 as previously.
Between April 2008 and March 2009, 2,863 people were issued with £30 fixed penalty tickets for not wearing a seatbelt in Staffordshire. Meanwhile, 460 received £30 tickets for number plate offences.
Les Dyble, the force’s traffic management officer, said:
“Thousands of lives are saved every year by seatbelts, yet some people still think they are above the law – placing their own and other road users’ lives at risk. Most motorists realise it’s sensible to wear a seatbelt. We hope the increased fines will act as a deterrent to the minority who don’t and help us in our ongoing efforts, with our partners, to reduce the number of those killed or seriously injured on Staffordshire’s roads.
“It is believed that people connected to serious crime are more likely to have illegal plates, so it’s crucial that members of the public help us catch serious offenders by making sure their own plates are legal.”
