Western Australia Parents Fined After Children Caught by AI Safety Cameras Moving Seatbelts
7NEWS
ENRICHED
Details
- Date Published
- 26 Feb 2026
- Priority Score
- 2
- Australian
- Yes
- Created
- 27 Feb 2026, 08:30 am
Description
They thought their children were safely buckled in, but a split-second movement has left hundreds of parents with eye-watering fines.
Summary
Western Australia has implemented AI-driven cameras to monitor seatbelt compliance, resulting in significant fines for parents when children slightly move their seatbelts. This deployment raises issues about the accuracy of AI in detecting safety offenses and the burden placed on parents to monitor seatbelt use continually. The initiative reflects broader trends in using AI for public safety, illustrating both its potential and the challenges related to unintended consequences. Although there is no direct link to existential AI risks, the case underscores the societal impact of AI technologies on safety policy and enforcement mechanisms.
Body
Parents across Western Australia are expressing frustration over new artificial intelligence safety cameras that are catching out hundreds of drivers when their children move their seatbelts, even without their knowledge.The high-tech cameras are issuing $550 fines and eight demerit point penalties to unsuspecting parents whose kids have shifted their seatbelts for just moments.Lisa Taylor received a shock when a fine arrived in the mail after her 10-year-old neurodivergent daughter moved her seatbelt off her shoulder briefly during a trip.Know the news with the 7NEWS app: Download today ArrowWATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Parents left with massive fines after kids caught by seatbelt cameras.“My understanding from her perspective was the seatbelt was hurting her. She does have a profile where she does struggle with sensory problems,” Taylor said.She’s not alone in her predicament. Triple M radio host Xavier Ellis was also caught out by the cameras.“I didn’t realise how much the onus was on the driver to continuously keep checking children and whatnot, how they’re harnessed in at all times,” he said.<img src="https://images.7news.com.au/publication/C-21767924/050ba7ca9b47b8f717d05dd6b598ac6e8d25cca9.jpg?imwidth=650&impolicy=sevennews_v2" alt="Parents have copped $550 road fines." class="css-tl044d-StyledNoScriptImage-StyledImage eu9mom10" />Parents have copped $550 road fines. Credit: 7NEWSThe AI software in the cameras automatically reviews every image captured. If a potential offence is detected, the image is reviewed by at least two people before any infringement is issued.“There are genuine cases. Those ones will always be difficult. And I think the team that do run this process need to know that there will be exemptions from time to time,” WA Police Commissioner Col Blanch said.Be the first to know: Add 7NEWS as your preferred news source on GoogleThe Road Safety Commission has acknowledged the issue and is returning to education mode after discovering an unexpected trend.“What we didn’t know is that about 80 per cent of the offences we’re detecting now with these new cameras involves someone who has it clipped in, but they’re just not wearing it correctly,” Road Safety Commissioner Adrian Warner said.Stream free on