1 of 4
www.carinsurance.org
car seats
2 of 4
www.komonews.com
Rear-facing car seat
Rear facing car seat3 of 4
www.kids-n-cribs.com
forward facing car seat
Forward facing car seat4 of 4
blogs.cars.com
booster seat
Booster seatAccording to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) car crashes are the number one killer of children ages 1-12. Therefore, the best way to protect your child in a car is to make sure that they are in the right seat and it is used the right way.
First of all, it is important to make sure that you have the appropriate seat for your child's age and size. There are 3 different varieties of car seats available: rear-facing, forward-facing and booster seats. According to the NHTSA, these seats should be used as follows:
Rear-Facing car seats should be used for young children until they are at least one year old. The recommendation is to keep small children in rear-facing car seats as long as possible as it is the safest position for a small child in a car. This type of seat has a harness and in a crash can cradle a small child and move with them to reduce the chance of injury to the spinal cord and fragile neck.
Forward-Facing car seats are to be used when a child reaches the top height or weight requirement on the rear-facing seat (set forth by the car seat manufacturer). This seat features a harness and tether to limit a child's forward movement in a crash.
Booster seats are designed for children that have outgrown their forward-facing car seat. The purpose of the booster is to position the child so that the seat belt is positioned properly on the child to provide maximum protection and reduce injury in a crash. Some booster seats have backs and some are backless.
Children should remain in a booster seat until they are large enough for a seat belt to fit properly. NC law requires that children remain in a booster seat until they are 80 pounds or 8 years old.
Children under the age of 12 are safest in the back seat of a car regardless of whether they are still using a booster seat or not.
For more information, visit http://www.safercar.gov/parents/RightSeat.htm
