Restrictions on riding in pickup beds
Pickup beds are not designed for people and offer no protection in a crash, yet most states allow adults to ride there. Read more on our main seat belts page.
This material has been prepared for general information purposes only. It is not guaranteed to be current and should be independently verified. Do not rely on it when considering how a law may apply to your circumstances.
April 2024
| State | Restrictions on riding in cargo areas | Who is not covered |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | no state law | no state law |
| Alaska | no state law | no state law |
| Arizona | no state law | no state law |
| Arkansas | yesFootnote 1 | employees on duty; people within bodies of trucks in a space intended for merchandise |
| California | yes | if the person is restrained by a federally approved restraint system; farmer owned vehicle used exclusively within farming land or 1 mile of highway between 1 part to another; parade if not more than 8 miles per hour; emergency situations |
| Colorado | yes | people sitting in the cargo area if it is fully or partially enclosed on all 4 sides |
| Connecticut | yes | people 16 and older; people 15 and younger if belted; parades; farming operations; hayrides August through December |
| Delaware | no state law | no state law |
| District of Columbia | yesFootnote 1 | employees on duty; people riding within truck bodies in a space intended for materials |
| Florida | yes | all persons 18 and older; persons 17 and younger in an enclosed cargo area; persons 17 and younger on non-limited-access roads unless local law exempts them from the prohibition on minors riding the cargo areas of pickup trucks and flatbeds; persons 17 and younger on non-limited-access roads in a seat fitted with a safety belt that has been added to the pickup or flatbed; employees on duty |
| Georgia | yes | people 18 and older; people 17 and younger in pickup trucks with covered cargo areas; any pickup truck off the interstate |
| Hawaii | yes | people 13 and older if there are no available seats in the cab and the side racks and tailgate are securely closed, and the passengers are seated on the floor and do not attempt to unlash cargo; also exempts life threatening emergencies; parades; employees on duty |
| Idaho | no state law | no state law |
| Illinois | no state law | no state law |
| Indiana | no state law | no state law |
| Iowa | no state law | no state law |
| Kansas | yes | people 14 and older; parades; employment; does not apply to vehicles not being operated in the state highway system or within the corporate limits of a city |
| Kentucky | no state law | no state law |
| Louisiana | yes | people 12 and older if the truck is being moved on a non-interstate highway; parades moving less than 15 mph; emergencies if the child is with an adult in the cargo area; emergencies while moving on an interstate highway |
| Maine | yes | people 19 and older; agricultural workers and hunters 18 and younger; parades; and people in OEM installed seats outside passenger compartment |
| Maryland | yes | people 16 and older; people 15 and younger if the vehicle is traveling 25 mph or less; employees being transported to work sites or people engaged in farming operations; exceptions do not eliminate requirement to use child restraint or belts; inapplicable to pickup trucks with covered cargo areas |
| Massachusetts | yes | people 12 and older; people 11 and younger if the vehicle is being driven less than 5 miles and less than 5 mph; parades; farming activities |
| Michigan | yes | 18 and older; 17 and younger if the vehicle is moving 15 mph or less; parades; military vehicles; emergency situations; farming; construction |
| Minnesota | no state law | no state law |
| Mississippi | no state law | no state law |
| Missouri | yes | people 18 and older; people 17 and younger if the vehicle is not being operated on a highway which is part of the state or federal highway system or within the corporate limits of any city; exceptions for employment; agricultural activities; parades; where there is a device to keep the passenger from being thrown or falling out of the vehicle; special events; assisting people in a recreational activity; family owned truck with insufficient room in the cab for all passengers; inapplicable to pickup trucks with covered cargo areas |
| Montana | no state law | no state law |
| Nebraska | yes | people age 18 or older; parades |
| Nevada | yes | people age 18 or older; people younger than 18 when the vehicle is used in farming or ranching or if vehicle is used in an authorized parade; vehicles operated on unpaved roads; people riding in areas enclosed by a camper shell |
| New Hampshire | no state law | no state law |
| New Jersey | yes | employees engaged in their duties |
| New Mexico | yes | people 18 and older |
| New York | yes | inapplicable to trips of 5 miles or less; inapplicable to trips of more than 5 miles if one-third or less of the passengers are standing or if suitable seats are securely attached and there are side rails and a tailgate; inapplicable to trips of more than 5 miles if there are less than 5 persons 17 or younger in the cargo area or if at least one person 18 or older is in the cargo area |
| North Carolina | yes | people 16 and older; persons 15 and younger if a supervising adult is present in the cargo area; when the child is belted; emergencies; parades; vehicle being used in agriculture; vehicles with permanent overhead structures |
| North Dakota | no state law | no state law |
| Ohio | yes | people 16 and older; people 15 and younger if the vehicle is driven less than 25 mph or if the person is seated and belted in an OEM seating position; emergencies; inapplicable to pickup trucks with covered cargo areas |
| Oklahoma | no state law | no state law |
| Oregon | yes | people 18 and older; minors secured with a safety belt or harness; parades; minors seated on the floor of the open bed of a motor vehicle in which all available passenger seats are occupied by minors, the tailgate is securely closed and the minor is being transported either in the course and scope of employment or between a hunting camp and hunting site or between hunting sites during hunting season and the minor has a hunting license |
| Pennsylvania | yes | people 18 and older if the vehicle is traveling less than 35 mph; inapplicable to occupants 17 and younger if the cargo area is enclosed; parades, hunting, and farm operations |
| Rhode Island | yes | people 16 and older; people 15 and younger who are secured in the cargo area |
| South Carolina | yes | people 15 and older; people 15 and younger when an adult is present; when the child is belted; parade; emergency situation; agricultural activities; hunting; vehicle has a secured metal tailgate and operated less than 36 mph; vehicle operated in county |
| South Dakota | no state law | no state law |
| Tennessee | yes | people 12 and older; people 6-11 in a vehicle being operated off the interstate or state highway system; parades if vehicle going less than 20 mph; agricultural activities; or on city or county roads unless prohibited by local ordinance or resolution |
| Texas | yes | people 18 and older; vehicles that are the only vehicles owned by members of the household; vehicles in parades, hay rides, or on beaches, or being used in an emergency; vehicles in farm operations used to transport people from field to field or on farm |
| Utah | no state law | no state law |
| Vermont | no state law | no state law |
| Virginia | yes | people 16 and older; farmers when crossing a highway to go from field to field |
| Washington | no state law | no state law |
| West Virginia | no state law | no state law |
| Wisconsin | yesFootnote 1 | inapplicable to enclosed areas; farm operations; parades; deer hunting; employees; people riding in truck bodies in spaces intended for merchandise |
| Wyoming | no state law | no state law |