If you’re a new parent, it can be overwhelming to figure out the nuances of traveling safely with your kids according to car seat guidelines. The rules, regulations, and common sense around child car seats can be confusing, but understanding them is key to ensuring your kids’ safety and operating within the law. Here’s what you need to know about car seat safety.

Why Car Seats are Important?

A safety car seat is important because it helps secure your child within your vehicle until your child is old enough to use your car’s standard seat belt restraints, which are designed for adults. Until a child is of the proper height and weight, seat belts cannot properly hold your child in place if your car is involved in a collision, and will likely even cause further injury. A car seat is designed to be secured within a vehicle using built-in hardware specifically for that purpose, and it both secures your child in a size-appropriate way and provides additional impact protection.

Age Guidelines for Car Seat Safety

Use the following safety guidelines for proper car seat use by age and the recommended types of car seats by age:

• Birth to 12 months – All children under the age of one should always ride in rear-facing child car seats. Newborn car seat safety is crucial and infant-only car seats can only be used rear-facing. Convertible and 3-in-1 car seats typically have higher height and weight limits, meaning parents can use them to keep their child rear-facing for a longer period. A rear-facing car seat has a harness and, in a crash, cradles and moves with the child to reduce stress to the fragile neck and spinal cord areas.
• 1 to 3 years – The best way to keep your child safe is to use a rear-facing car seat as long as possible. Use until the child reaches the top height or weight limit allowed by the manufacturer of the car seat. When the child outgrows the rear-facing car seat, it’s time to graduate to a forward-facing car seat with a harness. A forward-facing car seat has a harness and a tether to limit the child’s forward movement in a crash.
• 4 to 7 years – The child should remain in a forward-facing car seat with a harness until outgrowing the car seat manufacturer’s top limit for height and weight. When the child has outgrown this car seat, the child is ready to move on to the car booster seat, still positioned in the back seat of the vehicle. A booster seat positions the seat belt so that it properly fits over the stronger parts of the child’s body. In other words, a booster seat is likely the safest option for a car seat for 5 year olds or a car seat for 6 year olds.
• 8 to 12 years – Use the booster seat for your child until the child is big enough to fit in a seat belt properly. Proper seat belt fit means the lap belt fits snugly across the thighs, not the stomach. The shoulder belt should be snug across the child’s shoulder and chest, not crossing the neck or face. Even when the child is big enough for safety belt use, it’s still safest to have the child ride in the back seat.

10 Common Car Seat Safety Tips

Understand the LATCH system

In many cases, parents are confused about how to install car seats correctly, don’t know that every car seat doesn’t fit every car, or don’t know their vehicle is equipped with the Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH) system (or how to use it). Your car’s user manual will show you where your vehicle’s LATCH hardware is located, and if you don’t know how to install your child’s car seat, there’s no shame in asking for help.

Get expert guidance

Child car seat inspection stations are available throughout the country to help parents and caregivers ensure car seats are installed correctly. Certified technicians inspect the car seats and provide instruction on how to install them correctly. In most cases, this service is free of charge. Use the NHTSA’s car seat inspection station locator to find a nearby station.

Get the right seat

Choose a car seat that is based on your child’s age and size, one that fits your vehicle, and use it every time you transport the child.

Ensure your child’s car seat is in good condition

It’s best to buy a new child safety seat, but if you can’t afford it or you’re offered a used one by a friend or family member, it may be safe to use a used seat if you can verify its condition. The seat should have all of its labeling and instructions intact and readable, so you can check its manufacturer, date of manufacture, and model number. Don’t use a seat that is expired or more than six years old, that has been recalled for safety flaws, or that has been in a collision.

In a collision? Get a new seat

Your child safety seat does a big job — protecting your child in the event of a collision. Car seats are designed to take an impact only once, and if it’s been in a car that was in a crash, it is no longer safe to use. The NHTSA says it’s safe to reuse a seat after a minor collision that meets a specific set of conditions, but generally, plan to immediately replace a seat that’s been in an accident.

Ensure your child is dressed properly

Children should not be wearing thick or puffy clothing when in a child safety seat, since outerwear and similar garments make it difficult to ensure the straps are properly snug. Take off jackets, sweaters, and other heavy garments before securing your child, and if necessary, tuck a blanket over your child, from the shoulders down, after the seat is buckled.

Make sure you can see your child

It’s crucial to ensure an adult has a good view of a child in a car seat at all times. Even while buckled in, a child’s airway can become blocked if they choke or their head falls forward while sleeping, and a parent needs to be aware of this immediately.

Always pay attention to recalls

If you receive a notification that your child’s car safety seat has been recalled, stop using it immediately and follow the manufacturer’s instructions for reimbursement or replacement.

Use a car seat as long as possible

Maximize your child’s safety by using the car seat as long as possible, providing the child fits within the car seat manufacturer’s height and weight requirements for that particular seat.

Keep your kids in the back seat, even when they’re no longer in a child seat

Safety experts say parents should keep children in the back seat of the vehicle at least through age 12.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the basics of car seat safety?

The basics of car seat safety are to ensure your child’s car seat is the proper fit, and that it is properly installed in the correct location using the correct hardware. Keep your child in his or her car seat for as long as possible, and don’t let your child sit in the front seat until they are at least 12.

When can I put my child forward-facing?

Your child should be in a rear-facing car seat until about three years of age. When your child outgrows the rear-facing seat based on height and weight recommendations, it is time to get a new forward-facing seat.

What is one of the most common mistakes parents make with car seat safety?

One of the most common mistakes parents make is moving their child to a new setup too early. That can be moving from rear-facing to front-facing too quickly, or moving from a child safety seat to a booster seat too quickly. It’s dangerous to move your child to a different type of seat too soon.

Why is the seat behind the driver the safest?

As long as your child’s car seat is in the back row, you’ve made a safe choice. However, experts tend to agree that the middle seat in the rear row, not the seat behind the driver, is the safest. If you cannot install your child’s car seat in the middle, consider the advantages for either side. The seat on the passenger side is actually a good choice, because it provides the driver a better view of the child and is also typically the side farthest from traffic when parked in the street.

Is a car seat safer in the middle or side?

A safety car seat is safest in the middle of the back row. That’s because in the middle, it’s as far as possible away from any potential direct impact, for example, if another vehicle collided with the rear doors. Whether your car seat safety need is rear-facing or front facing, the middle is the best spot.

What is the two finger rule for car seats?

The two finger rule for child car seats is an easy car seat safety check every time you buckle up your child’s car seat. After buckling in your child, slip two fingers under the straps. If you can’t fit two fingers, the straps are too tight, and if you can fit too fingers too easily, the straps are too loose.