The operation of vehicles is prohibited if:

Explanation

If the head restraints provided for in the vehicle's structure are absent.

A head restraint is not a comfort item; it is part of the vehicle's passive safety system, and the absence of head restraints the manufacturer provided for prohibits operation of the vehicle.

Remember what a head restraint does through the "whiplash" mechanism: when a vehicle strikes you from behind, the body and seat are thrown suddenly forward while the head, through inertia, stays where it is; the result is a violent rearward extension of the neck and injury to the vertebrae and ligaments. The head restraint stops this movement and keeps the head travelling with the torso. Notably, this injury occurs even in low-speed urban collisions — the classic shunt at a red light — and is one of the most frequent lasting traffic injuries.

The option about the interior lights of a passenger car is a trap, and the exam manoeuvres on exactly one distinction: interior cabin lighting for a passenger car is not on the list of prohibiting defects, but the failure of interior lighting in a bus is an offence. The reason is the difference in function; in a bus, passengers move in the dark on the steps and in the aisle, and interior lighting is part of the safety of boarding and alighting, whereas in a passenger car it serves only comfort.

• Interior lighting in a passenger car is not on the list of prohibiting defects; the option is tempting because this same item really is an offence for a bus. • Since the first item is not an offence, the "in both cases" option is wrong too.

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