These States Don’t Care If You Ride In The Back Of A Pickup
Nothing feels more freeing than riding on the back of a pickup truck. The 365-degree view of the road, the wind in your hair, the dust in your eyes — it’s an unbeatable experience. But as exhilarating as it is, pickup bed riding can also be quite dangerous. While there are somesafe trucks according to the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety (IIHS)— like thedual-motor 2024 Rivian R1Tand thesmall 2024 Hyundai Santa Cruz— it’s still quite possible for passengers in pickup beds to get injured (or worse, die), especially if they’re unrestrained. This is exactly why many states in the United States have regulations about riding in the back of pickup trucks.
For several states, riding on the bed of a pickup truck is allowed for all ages if the vehicle is part of an authorized parade (or caravans and the like) and used for agricultural activities, or if the passengers are on-duty employees or in a medical emergency. But what about in other circumstances?
States where pickup-bed riding is largely unrestricted
There are only a few states that outright legalize riding on the bed of a pickup truck. For starters, in Oklahoma, passengers can ride on pickup-truck beds, as stated specifically in Oklahoma Statute 07-06-2025. Similarly, in the District of Columbia, Arkansas, and Utah, it’s explicitly legal for passengers to ride on spaces in a truck intended for cargo.
Meanwhile, Alabama, Arizona, Delaware, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia, and Wyoming don’t have laws regarding passengers in pickup truck beds. That means it’s generally fine to do so. However, many of these states do have strict laws regarding the use of seat belts, so you need to keep this in mind. In Indiana, for instance, a letter from the attorney general in 2007 clarified that its seat belt laws don’t exempt passengers in the back of a pickup truck. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, passengers of pickup trucks in New Mexico, North Dakota, and West Virginia are also covered by their respective seat belt laws.
In Nebraska, there are no statewide laws regarding riding in pickup truck beds, but it’s banned in some municipalities, including Lincoln and Columbus (unless it’s for a parade).
States allowing pickup bed riding for adults
In 11 states, only adults are generally allowed to ride in the back of a pickup truck. There are, however, some exceptions.
You can also allow minors on the bed ofpickup trucks that are used for farmingin Maine, Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, and Texas.
States allowing pickup bed riding for minors (16-plus)
Many states let minors go pickup-bed riding, but with provisions as such:
If the vehicle is used in a parade, these prohibitions don’t apply to Connecticut and Virginia.
States allowing pickup bed riding for minors (under 16)
Children are allowed to ride in the pickup bed in some states, considering the conditions are met:
States with pickup bed riding conditions
In some states, age doesn’t matter when it comes to riding on the back of a pickup truck. However, there are conditions for it to be legal. Here’s the breakdown of the requirements for states that allow pickup bed riding regardless of age:
In Alaska, California, Colorado, and Hawaii, you can also have a person ride the back of a pickup truck if it’s participating in a parade (and moving at most 8 miles per hour for California).
