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Stealth
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| Joined: | Wed Oct 31st, 2007 |
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Posted: Tue Apr 1st, 2008 06:46 pm |
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911mot wrote: Q. When is a plank of wood a seat?
A. When its got sealt belts....
Depends which way it's facing  
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911mot
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| Joined: | Sat Mar 31st, 2007 |
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Posted: Tue Apr 1st, 2008 06:41 pm |
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Q. When is a plank of wood a seat?
A. When its got sealt belts....
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Stealth
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Posted: Tue Apr 1st, 2008 06:13 pm |
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If you are going to be building your own seats into the van from scratch, you might want to consider this - side facing benches, and rear facing seats are not subject to seat belt regulations.
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DanSarg
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| Joined: | Mon Mar 31st, 2008 |
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Posted: Tue Apr 1st, 2008 09:30 am |
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Interesting points - I'll get onto my insurers and see what they say. The C15 can come as a car, so hopefully it won't be too much of an issue to fit a rear seat.
In your (much more knowledgable) experience, if a simple bench seat that was bolted into place that had lap belts was fitted in a small van, as long as there were no obvious safety risks and the seat seemed secure, are the police likely to deem it as unsafe just because it's home made rather than a factory produced seat?
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volksjim
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| Joined: | Sun Nov 18th, 2007 |
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Posted: Mon Mar 31st, 2008 11:25 pm |
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| had a class 7 transit carpet van in last year with a prohibtion notice served on an insecure seat..only problem was it was the front seat removed and refitted so it was side facing therefore mot regulations did not apply confirmed this by phoning swansea so issued a pass and advise notice... so be aware
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castrolrob
Trade Member
| Joined: | Sun Sep 10th, 2006 |
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Posted: Mon Mar 31st, 2008 09:40 pm |
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just cos it passes an mot doesnt mean a copper cant do you.sure ive answered summat similar before,construction+use regs are different to mot,your insurance liability for this would also be a major issue.mention your proposals to your insurance firm before you do anything-you may find they are less than impressed...
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DanSarg
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| Joined: | Mon Mar 31st, 2008 |
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Posted: Mon Mar 31st, 2008 08:25 pm |
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Thanks for both replies.
It already has an MOT for at least another 6 months, but if the seats are illegal, a copper can do me.
There are no side windows in the back.
I've read that there is no requirement for seatbelts if there are no windows, but I could easily get 3 points on my license for letting people sit in the back as they would be a danger to other belted passengers in an accident.
So ideally, so that it would pass an MOT and would also be relatively safe so that I can't get penalised if I am stopped, I would like MOT passable seating that a copper can't argue against.
So if there was a window in the back, would a seat made up as descibed pass an MOT? What is checked when looking at rear seats in vans? And do the belts just need bog standard bolts going through the floor?
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KevG
Super Moderator
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Posted: Mon Mar 31st, 2008 06:43 pm |
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Has the van got windows fitted behind the diver(Apart from the rear doors?
If not, seat belts are not required.
Or do as 911 says! Would save a lot of hassle.
Kev
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911mot
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Posted: Mon Mar 31st, 2008 06:35 pm |
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| Why not just get it tested first, and fit seats after? Could save a lot of confusion / frustration..
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DanSarg
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Posted: Mon Mar 31st, 2008 11:19 am |
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Hi. I have a small 2003 Citroen C15 van, and I intend to use it as an occasional camper.
My plans are to have benches along the sides at the back, and I would like to be able to fit (basically) a plank of wood going across these benches, with a back. Bums go on the plank facing forwards, and they rest their backs on the back plank. I would also like to be able to get people facing backwards too, with simple lap belts bolted to the floor.
Would this pass an MOT? The boards could be moved into different positions to make up a bed, and I was thinking of some quick release bolts to hold the boards into position.
Where would I stand with this? Do I legally just need to have the seat parts (bum plank and back plank) fixed with bolts with lap belts bolted to the floor?
I can't find this info anywhere so any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Dan.
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