A young mum was fined $400 for pumping breast milk while in the passenger seat of the family car.
Rianna, 28, from Brisbane, was on the way home from a wedding with her husband Stephen and 11-month-old son when she started pumping.
The couple were later shocked to discover a fine in the mail because Rianna was not wearing her seatbelt correctly.
She told Kidspot she had pumped breast milk in the car on numerous occasions before but this time she was served a nasty lesson.
A month after the event, her husband Stephen received a notice in the mail fining him $413 and three demerit points because his wife was wearing her seat belt ‘incorrectly’.
‘I saw it and I said, ‘Oh, oh, you’ve got a fine!’. Then he opened it and went, ‘you’re kidding me’… because it was actually me who had done it,’ Rianna said.
Traffic cameras had picked up that she was wearing her seat belt ‘incorrectly’ when she moved the strap below her breast to attach and remove the breast pump.
‘I was either just about to or had just finished pumping both breasts. The seat belt was on me normally the whole time I was actually pumping, so to have this happen was really shocking timing,’ she said.
Rianna said she thought the fine was a ‘mistake’ at first.
“I assumed that if you were wearing a seatbelt, then you would be fined – not for incorrectly wearing one. Stephen was fine about it, but I was more disappointed because I couldn’t be the one taking the points even though I was the one responsible.”
She added “There should be a warning letter to the owner of the vehicle, explaining what the passenger has done wrong and that if you are caught in future, then a fine will follow,” she’ll never make the same mistake again that’s for sure.
Seatbelt rules
QLD laws state you and all passengers in your vehicle must always wear a seatbelt or child restraint when driving. Driving includes when the vehicle is moving or stationary (for example, when stopped at traffic lights), but not when parked.
As the driver of the vehicle, it is your responsibility to ensure you and every passenger in the vehicle is correctly restrained before you start your journey.
