Beer strapped in, not child

An Australian driver has been fined for putting a seatbelt around a carton of beer instead of a five-year-old passenger.

Constable Wayne Burnett told reporters he was "shocked and appalled" to discover the driver's priorities when he pulled a sedan over on the Ross Highway south of the desert town of Alice Springs.

"I haven't ever seen something like this before," he said.

"There were four adults in the car, two in the front seat and two in the back seats and in between those adults there was the carton of beer strapped in with the belt," he said.

"The child was sitting in the lump in the centre, unrestrained."

The driver was fined 750 dollars (707 US) for driving an unregistered and uninsured vehicle and failing to ensure a child was wearing a seatbelt.