One-Minute Car Safety Seat Check-up

Using a car safety seat correctly makes a big difference. Even the "safest" seat may not protect your child in a crash unless it is used correctly. So take a minute to check to be sure...

Does Your Car Have a Passenger Air Bag?

• An infant in a rear-facing seat should NEVER be placed in the front seat of a vehicle that has a passenger air bag.
• The safest place for all children to ride is in the back seat.
• If an older child must ride in the front seat, move the vehicle seat as far back as possible, buckle the child properly, and make sure he stays in the proper position at all times.

Is Your Child Facing the Right Way for Weight, Height and Age?

• Infants should ride facing the back of the car until they have reached at least 1 year of age AND weigh at least 20 pounds.
• A child who weighs 20 pounds or exceeds the height limit for the car safety seat before he reaches 1 year of age should continue to ride rear-facing in a car safety seat approved for use at higher weights and heights in the rear-facing position.
• A child who weighs more than 20 pounds AND is older than 1 year of age may face forward. It is safest for a child to ride rear-facing until she reaches the top weight or height allowed by the seat for use in the rear-facing position.
• Once your child faces forward, she should remain in a car safety seat with a full harness until she reaches the top weight or height allowed by the seat. When changing the seat for use in the forward-facing position, you must make adjustments. Check your car safety seat instructions.

Is the Harness Snug; Does It Stay on Your Child's Shoulders?

• Harnesses should fit snugly against your child's body. Check the car safety seat instructions on how to adjust the straps.
• The chest clip should be placed at armpit level to keep the harness straps on the shoulders.

Has Your Child Grown Too Tall or Reached the Top Weight Limit for the Forward-Facing Seat?

• Children are best protected in a car safety seat with a full harness until they reach the top weight or height limit of the car safety seat.
• Once your child outgrows his car safety seat, use a belt-positioning booster seat to help protect him until he is big enough to use a seat belt properly. A belt-positioning booster seat is used with a lap and shoulder belt.
• Shield boosters: Although boosters with shields may meet current Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards for use by children who weigh 30 to 40 pounds, on the basis of current published peer-reviewed literature, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) does not recommend their use.
• A seat belt fits properly when the shoulder belt crosses the chest, the lap belt is low and snug across the thighs, and the child is tall enough so that when he sits against the vehicle seat back, his legs bend at the knees and his feet hang down.

Does the Car Safety Seat Fit Correctly in Your Vehicle?

• Not all car safety seats fit in all vehicles.
• When the car safety seat is installed, be sure it does not move side-to-side or toward the front of the car.
• Read the section on car safety seats in the owner's manual for your car. 

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