The reporter raised a safety concern regarding passengers moving around the cabin with the seatbelt sign illuminated.
The reporter advised that while awaiting departure, and the aircraft undergoing maintenance, the seatbelt sign was illuminated. However, due to the length of time in the aircraft, cabin crew allowed passengers to freely move through the cabin.
The reporter queried with cabin crew if the flight deck was aware of passenger movements, given that they had illuminated the seatbelt sign, to which the reporter advises they were told 'it was not required'.
The reporter is concerned that the flight deck would have assumed all passengers were in their seats and could have pushed back at any time with unrestrained passengers.
[Operator] agrees that the cabin needs to inform the flight deck of any passenger movements when the seatbelt sign is on. While [Operator] is unable to determine the exact circumstances on the specific flight (due to the report being de-identified), [Operator] will raise the matter at the next cabin crew safety meeting, reminding all cabin managers of the requirement. [Operator] thanks the reporter for bringing this matter to their attention.
The ATSB did not seek a response from the regulator.