''In the 16 years that Dale and I were together, Dale never said anything to me about any conversation with Bill Simpson or any of Bill's representatives regarding the installation of the seat belts,'' car owner Richard Childress said. ''Bill did speak to Dale and me on several occasions concerning safety issues, including gloves, shoes and full-face helmets.

''But I have checked with every crew chief that ever worked with Dale at RCR to see if any of them had been approached by Bill about incorrect seat-belt installation. Not one of them said he ever had.''

The issue came up after NASCAR presented its report Tuesday into Earnhardt's Feb. 18 death.

Its investigation found that a combination of a broken seat belt, a collision with another car and the angle in which his Chevrolet hit the wall on the final turn of the Daytona 500 all contributed to Earnhardt' death.

The report also said the separation of the belt was ''not caused by driver adjustment.''

Nevertheless, immediately after the presentation, a representative of Simpson's said the belt maker had told Earnhardt on more than one occasion that he was not using his belts correctly.

''Bill Simpson told him for years that the way he was using the belts was not safe,'' attorney Bob Horn said while Simpson sat silently beside him.

''Dale listened, but his response was to do it the way he wanted to do it.''

Simpson, who did not speak at the news conference, reiterated the claim on Thursday and said he had witnesses to some of the conversations, including Robin Miller, a motorsports writer formerly with the Indianapolis Star .

Miller confirmed he was present at one of those conversations, which he said took place at Indianapolis Motor Speedway sometime in the last two years.

''I was talking to Earnhardt about the HANS device and Simpson came up and started talking to him about the way his seat belts were installed,'' Miller said. ''I can't remember exactly what was said, but safety was discussed in depth. Why would Simpson lie about this?''