South Carolina S 280: Safety belts, evidence admissibility in civil action

Bill Text

2025-2026 Bill 280 Text of Previous Version (Jan. 28, 2025) - South Carolina Legislature Online 

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026

Bill 280

Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter

(Text matches printed bills. Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)

A bill

TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY AMENDING 
SECTION 56-5-6540, RELATING TO THE ADMISSIBILITY AS EVIDENCE OF NEGLIGENCE IN A 
CIVIL ACTION REGARDING THE USE OF SAFETY BELTS, SO AS TO REMOVE THE PROVISION 
THAT A VIOLATION OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS RELATING TO SAFETY BELTS IS NOT 
NEGLIGENCE PER SE OR CONTRIBUTORY NEGLIGENCE, AND TO REMOVE THE PROVISION THAT 
A VIOLATION IS NOT ADMISSIBLE AS EVIDENCE IN A CIVIL ACTION.

Be it enacted by the 
General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

SECTION 1. Section 56-5-6540 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:

 Section 
56-5-6540. (A) A person who is 
adjudicated to be in violation of the provisions of this article must be fined 
not more than twenty-five dollars, no part of which may be suspended. No court 
costs, assessments, or surcharges may be assessed against a person who violates 
a provision of this article. A person must not be fined more than fifty 
dollars for any one incident of one or more violations of the provisions of 
this article. A custodial arrest for a violation of this article must not be 
made, except upon a warrant issued for failure to appear in court when summoned 
or for failure to pay an imposed fine. A violation of this article does not 
constitute a criminal offense. Notwithstanding Section 56-1-640, a violation 
of this article must not be:

 (1) 
included in the offender's motor vehicle records maintained by the Department 
of Motor Vehicles or in the criminal records maintained by SLED; or

 (2) 
reported to the offender's motor vehicle insurer.

 (B) 
A law enforcement officer must not issue a citation to a driver or a passenger 
for a violation of this article when the stop is made in conjunction with a 
driver's license check, safety check, or registration check conducted at a 
checkpoint established to stop all drivers on a certain road for a period of 
time, except when the driver is cited for violating another motor vehicle law. 
The driver and any passenger shall be required to buckle up before departing 
the checkpoint and should the driver or the passenger refuse, then the person 
refusing may be charged with a primary violation.

 (C) A violation of this 
article is not negligence per se or contributory negligence, and is not 
admissible as evidence in a civil action.

 (D)(C) A vehicle, driver, or occupant in a vehicle must not 
be searched, nor may consent to search be requested by a law enforcement 
officer, solely because of a violation of this article.

 (E)(D) A law enforcement officer must not stop a driver for a 
violation of this article except when the officer has probable cause that a 
violation has occurred based on his clear and unobstructed view of a driver or 
an occupant of the motor vehicle who is not wearing a safety belt or is not 
secured in a child restraint system as required by Article 47 of this chapter.

 (F)(E) A person charged with a violation of this article may 
admit or deny the violation, enter a plea of nolo contendere, or be tried 
before either a judge or a jury. If the trier of fact is convinced beyond a 
reasonable doubt that the person was not wearing a safety belt at the time of 
the incident, then the penalty is a civil fine 
pursuant to Section 56-5-6540this 
section. If the trier of fact determines that the State has failed to 
prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the person was not wearing a safety belt, then no penalty shall be assessed.

 (G)(F) A person found to be in violation of this article may 
bring an appeal to the court of common pleas pursuant to Section 18-3-10 or 
Section 14-25-95.

SECTION 2. This act takes effect upon approval 
by the Governor.

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This web page was last updated on January 28, 2025 at 12:37 PM