# Having a seat belt fitted in the rear lounge



## Barts

We have a Hymer B550, we are taking our Grandson to France this year, we need a seat belt fitted in the rear U shaped lounge,
has anyone had this done? if so how much did it cost and who in the West Sussex area could do this. Your advice would be much appreciated.

Kind regards 

Barts


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## Fatalhud

Hi Barts
I think you will struggle to get someone to install and certify a retrofit as fit for purpose. (how could they prove it would withstand a crash)

If you did have an accident and the belt failed then they would be liable

Alan H


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## ICDSUN

Barts said:


> We have a Hymer B550, we are taking our Grandson to France this year, we need a seat belt fitted in the rear U shaped lounge,
> has anyone had this done? if so how much did it cost and who in the West Sussex area could do this. Your advice would be much appreciated.
> 
> Kind regards
> 
> Barts


Not too sure it can be done easily, generally it requires a fixing point(s) to the chassis or a substantial vehicle structure, in a motorhome these are not too prevalent, I don't know the layout of your van but a lot have the belts fitted to the dinette seat if that is an option, maybe a call to the local VOSA unit could get you an official position and hopefully advice on the feasibility

Chris


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## bognormike

sorry, Barts, I agree with Alan. No easy way out.

If you could get one fitted you would need a complete steel frame which is anchored to the chassis. U-shaped lounge 'vans are not ideally suited for this, as the main construction back there would be timber & plastic / fibreglass. 

Our daughter's in laws bought a U shaped lounge van (swift), and wanted to take our granddaugters out in their 'van - I told our daughter not to let them travel at all in it. :roll:


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## PaulW2

When I bought my motorhome last year I needed to choose between a few vehicles. I asked whether one that didn't have sufficient seatbelts could have some fitted and was told by the dealer that this couldn't be done at all as it wouldn't meet safety standards. 

So I would agree that you may find it difficult to find someone to fit a seatbelt. It struck me as a bit odd that it was legal to transport passengers without seatbelts if this was how the van was originally built, but that for safety reasons one couldn't have belts retrofitted to the same vehicle...


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## Fatalhud

PaulW2 said:


> It struck me as a bit odd that it was legal to transport passengers without seatbelts if this was how the van was originally built, but that for safety reasons one couldn't have belts retrofitted to the same vehicle...


I think the problem is that a company has to prove the work reaches safety standards, and there is no way of doing this without crash testing

Alan H


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## Pollydoodle

PaulW2 said:


> I asked whether one that didn't have sufficient seatbelts could have some fitted and was told by the dealer that this couldn't be done at all as it wouldn't meet safety standards.
> 
> ...


I asked a dealer the same question and was given the same answer - so we ended up with a 6 berth (with 6 belts) instead of the 4 that would have suited us :roll:


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## IanA

I'm in the same boat - i only have the front seats with belts, but enough room for another 6 passengers, and beds for 6 in total. The seats are facing into the vehicle, so lap and diagonals are not allowed. I spoke to the dealer, and up until a few years ago they fabricated steel frames to support lap-belts - but had to make sure they were classed as restraints, not seatbelts. They had to stop due to liability issues with their insurer. 

I'm toying with the idea of getting something fabricated for lap belts to act as a restraint as the MH is perfect except for this. 

I have told the family that they will need to drive to where the MH is in their car and use that for day trips - makes it a bit like a caravan, I know, but will still allow my wife and I to go off on our jaunts.

Just thought - I could always use the rear wall of the MH for lap and diagonals fitted to the bed - could have other uses - but I won't go there!


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## pippin

This has been debated many times here on MHF and the consensus every time is that it is simply not legal/practicable/safe/economic to fit extra seat belts.

The advice usually given is to change the 'van to something that already has the required number of belts fitted from new.

Not what you want to hear.


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## Barts

*Seat Belts fitted in U shaped Lounge*

Thanks everyone for your replies it's nice of you all to take the trouble,another thought do you think we could remove the passengers captains chair and install a bench seat, as our Motorhome is built on a Mercedes sprinter chassis.

Kind regards

Barts


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## mandyandandy

It has also been said by both medical and safety people that fitting and using a side facing seats would do more damage to the body than no belt at all. 

Try riding on the seats without a belt, almost impossible not to topple off. 

How old is the Grandson? Will he sit happily unrestrained for that length of journey most children under 14 will soon get bored and start to wander without the belt. 

Sorry that we don't have an answer for you, Towtal do fit retro seat belts but not sure if they would do one in your situation. 

Mandy


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## Hymer_Bay

Hi Barts,

I am in the process of designing a bench-seat modification for my B694, which also has a Captains Seat. It will have two 3 point belts on a steel chassis, bolted through to the floor. if you send me your E-mail address I will send you some pics. I must say that I am not a trade professional so cannot give any guarantees and have no certifications or approvals, it is very much a DIY project. 

Cheers

Simon


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## short-stick

Regarding fitting a bench seat to the front, have a look at some merc vans from the same period and see if they have such a thing fitted.... I looked at this for a Fiat X250 and it is perfectly feasible and I even found a front passenger bench with seatbelts for £100 on ebay, provided you install this the same as the manufacturer does then you would have 3 seats with seatbelts, but you'd maybe have to climb over them to get into the back! Not perfect but cheaper than changing the van and you can always bol tthe original seat back in when wanted.... Would have to advise the insurance though and maybe DVLA that it has 3 passenger seats...


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## bognormike

*Re: Seat Belts fitted in U shaped Lounge*



Barts said:


> Thanks everyone for your replies it's nice of you all to take the trouble,another thought do you think we could remove the passengers captains chair and install a bench seat, as our Motorhome is built on a Mercedes sprinter chassis.
> 
> Kind regards
> 
> Barts


that's an interesting thought. Would you be able to access the seats properly from inside?


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## Barts

*Fitting Bench Seat*

Thanks again for all your replies, our Grandson is nearly fifteen but
would not risk any of us travelling without seat belts.We are going to look in to the bench seat idea, as there doesn't seem another way around this other than changing the van . Thanks again for all your help

Kind regards

Barts


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## Snunkie

We have a Ford Kentucky Camp Estro with rear lounge layout. When we bought it, it had had 2 additional lapbelts fitted in the rear lounge. They are bolted through the floor and we were told that so long as the floor was a certain thickness and met the requirements then this was allowed. 

We don't let anyone travel up the back if there are vacant seats in the front, but we do use the rear ones when we have to. The problem is that they go through the back of the boot, and if a car were to hit us then although they would be below where the passengers were sitting they would take out the seatbelts, thus taking out the passengers. Not something I like to think about but it is obviously a possibility. Hence only using the rear ones when absolutely necessary


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## Invicta

I find it incredible that there are still new motorhomes advertised with more berths that belted seats.

Just when are the manufacturers going to get to grips with this situation?


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## Snunkie

Me too! We are a family of 6 with 4 children and were so limited by what we could buy because of requiring 6 seatbelts as well as 6 berth


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