Anyone familiar with the frustration of trying to drive a vehicle with groceries or a 12-pack in the front passenger seat only to face an annoying alarm because the items are not strapped with seatbelts should soon be prepared to face that same irritation even when those items are in the back seat.

Starting in 2027, the alarm that nags drivers and front seat passengers who are not wearing their seatbelts will start sounding off when passengers in the back of the car are not strapped in, thanks to a new rule from the Biden administration. 

On Monday, the Transportation Department’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration finalized a rule that mandates all new vehicles to have rear seat belt alarms by September 1, 2027. 

The rule will amend the “Occupant crash protection” standard, which mandated seat belt warnings for the driver’s seat and will apply to passenger cars and trucks. It will also apply to buses, but school buses will be exempt from the change. 

In a statement announcing the new rule, the administrations’s chief counsel, Adam Raviv, said, “Wearing a seat belt is one of the easiest and most effective ways to prevent injury and death in a vehicle crash.

“While seat belt use has improved for decades, there’s still more we can do to make sure everyone buckles up. These new requirements will help to increase seat belt use, especially for rear seat passengers, by enhancing reminders for vehicle occupants to buckle up,” he added.

The Transportation Department says about 91.6 percent of people in the front seats wore their seat belts in 2022, while 81.7 percent of passengers used their rear seat belts. 

By implementing the new requirement, the department estimates it will prevent roughly 500 injuries and save as many as 50 lives every year. 

The new rule will also require vehicles to display a reminder for occupants of a vehicle to wear their seat belts for 60 seconds after starting their vehicle. 

In 2012, Congress directed the department to explore whether to mandate rear seat belt warnings. The European Union mandated vehicle makers to include rear seat belt warnings in 2019. 

The Biden administration’s seat belt regulation is not expected to add a significant financial burden for automakers. The car news site, the Drive, notes that the added wiring and sensors should not cost the vehicle manufacturers much.