NASCAR Adopts New Rules After Latest Seat-Belt Incident

Reacting to the discovery of a partially torn seat belt in Jeremy Mayfield’s car, NASCAR on Thursday announced new rules regarding the placement of belts and manufacturer labels that the sanctioning body hopes will prevent a recurrence.

The changes were recommended by Dr. James Raddin and Dr. John Melvin, two experts NASCAR commissioned to investigate the death of Dale Earnhardt and conduct an additional study on occupant-restraint systems.

NASCAR sent them Mayfield’s belt to examine after it was found to be partially torn following an accident in Dover, Del., on Sunday.

Effective immediately, manufacturer labels cannot be located under the adjusting mechanism when the driver is buckled in the seat and has tightened the seat belts and shoulder harness.

If the label is under the adjusting mechanism, the label must be removed or relocated “in a manner that does not affect the integrity of the belt material.” The date of manufacture must still remain visible on the belts at all times.

Earnhardt was killed in the Daytona 500 on Feb. 18. An inspection of his car found a broken lap belt and investigators later attributed it to the phenomenon known as “dumping.”

Dumping occurs when the webbing is pulled or moved to one side of the adjustment device through which the belt webbing travels. When a dumped belt is under stress, it can separate and tear across the entire webbing.

Although Mayfield’s partial tear is still under investigation, NASCAR believes the belt broke because of dumping.

By moving the manufacturer label out from under the adjuster, there is less material that could be affected or dumped.