What are seatbelt rules on coaches and buses in France?

Police in France have been carrying out spot checks on school buses to ensure passengers are wearing their seatbelts.

Some of the latest checks, in Loir-et-Cher in late November, saw offending students temporarily excluded from school transport

Wearing a seatbelt has been mandatory on school buses since 2003. 

Since 2015, all coaches must also be equipped with seatbelts. Only buses (urban public transport vehicles, designed primarily for standing passengers) and small tourist road trains are exempt.

Unlike with cars, it is the passenger rather than the driver who is responsible for making sure they are buckled up. 

However, transport organisers have an obligation to ensure seatbelts are in good condition, ensure safe transport by encouraging the use of seatbelts, and to watch over children during the trip.

Anyone over the age of 13 caught not using a seatbelt risks a fine of €135, (reduced to €90 for prompt payment).

Flixbus, which operates 60% of the coach lines in France, told The Connexion its drivers were trained to always remind passengers that wearing a seatbelt is compulsory.

The Fédération des Usagers des Transports de Voyageurs (FNTV) made seatbelt use its national cause for 2025.

Safety campaign

The government’s road safety unit also launched a campaign in the summer to highlight the importance of wearing seatbelts on school transport.

Using figures from 2021, the latest available, it said that 21% of people killed in vehicles of all kinds were not wearing seatbelts.

And referring specifically to public transport, the road safety unit said that most severe injuries sustained in accidents were due to occupants being either thrown out of the coach or bus, or being thrown about inside it.

The Code de la route stipulates that wearing a seatbelt is not compulsory, although it is strongly recommended, in the following cases: people whose body shape is clearly unsuitable for wearing a seatbelt (people who are extremely obese, etc.); people who are exempted for various other medical reasons by a departmental medical board; drivers or passengers of priority public service vehicles or ambulances in emergency situations; taxi drivers on duty; in urban areas, drivers and passengers of public service vehicles required to stop frequently for operational reasons or vehicles making door-to-door deliveries.

New law has brought benefits for customers and operators

Coach travel has benefitted enormously in France from the 2015 loi Macron, named after its architect, the then-Economy Minister Emmanuel Macron.

This liberalised long-distance coach transport, until then the preserve of rail, with the aim of offering a cheaper alternative for long journeys.

According to figures from the Autorité de régulation des transports, bus companies carried nearly 18 million passengers in 2024. This beats the previous record set in 2019. 

Two companies – FlixBus and BlaBlaCar – dominate the market.

Prices were on average €6 per passenger for 100km in 2024.

However, it added: “The delay rate deteriorated significantly in 2024. Nearly a quarter of coaches that actually ran in 2024 arrived at their terminus more than 15 minutes late, an increase of 2.5 points.”

Passengers using coach travel can only be compensated in the event of a delay recorded at the start of the journey, not delays on arrival.