Child Car Seat Position By Age
At that point the seat can be converted into a forward facing.
Child car seat position by age. According to the nhtsa children should travel in booster seats until they are about 4 feet 9 or until they are 8 years old. Check how your child sits in the car without a child car seat. All children whose weight or height exceeds the forward facing limit for their car safety seat should use a belt positioning booster seat until the vehicle seat belt fits properly typically when they have reached 4 feet 9 inches in height and are 8 to 12 years of age.
Once they are 2 years old or regardless of age have outgrown their rear facing car seat toddlers should sit in a forward facing car seat with harness straps as long as possible and until they reach the weight and height limits of their car seat. Most kids can safely use an adult seat belt sometime between ages 8 and 12. Keep in mind that many convertible car seats and combination car seats have forward facing weight limits of 65 to 80 pounds when used with harness straps.
Here s how you ll know that your child is ready. Your child sits against the back of the seat with his or her knees bent comfortably at the edge of the seat and can remain that way for the entire trip. A study published in pediatrics showed for children newborn to 3 years old sitting in the center rear seat is 43 safer than sitting on the side in the back.
Rear facing seats forward facing seats booster seats the safety guidelines all start to blend together after a while. It was found that the most common location in the vehicle for a car seat was the rear passenger side 41 of parents put the child s car seat here. Here s a simple lesson to help you navigate the age requirements weight limits and various styles of children s car seats.
Each country has different regulations in their national laws for how long a child must use a child car seat. Your child reaches a height of 4 feet 9 inches nearly 1 5 meters. Most convertible car seats can be used in the rear facing position until a child reaches the weight limit typically 40 to 50 pounds.
In most countries the minimum is 135 cm or the age of 12. Too many people are in a hurry to turn their babies around deal says. Have the child in a booster seat until the lap belt lies on the thighs rather than the stomach and the shoulder belt lies on the chest rather than the face or neck.