WEST VIRGINIA (NEXSTAR) – If you grew up in West Virginia with someone who owned a pickup truck, chances are you rode in the bed of that truck at least once or twice.
There are a lot of reasons one might ride in the back of a truck, especially since it can feel liberating to do so. But is it legal?
West Virginia doesn’t have a law in the book explicitly forbidding anyone from riding in the open bed of a truck or trailer.
The state is one of 19 states that have no restrictions on who can ride in the open bed of a truck or trailer. The 18 other states, according to Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, are as follows:
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Delaware
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Iowa
- Kentucky
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Montana
- New Hampshire
- North Dakota
- South Dakota
- Oklahoma
- Vermont
- Washington
- Wyoming
Other states also have restrictions on who can ride in the bed of a truck or trailer. For example, drivers in Texas transporting anyone younger than 18 in the bed of a truck or on a trailer can face a fine between $25 and $200.
That being said, the risk of injury while traveling without a seatbelt is still very real, and drivers should be aware of how dangerous traveling with riders in the back of a truck or trailer can be.
