Every state in the country requires by law that infants and or small child ride in a moving vehicle in an approved child safety seat. As parents we want our children to be safe but many studies have shown that even though parents are using car seats a large amount of them are not being used correctly. Improperly using a car seat or using a car seat that is inadequate is just as dangerous as not having them in one at all.
When selecting a car seat for your child you should ensure that meets or exceeds Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 213. Also many parents are tempted to purchase used seats but this is not advisable since you do not know the history of the child safety seat. It is easy to accidentally purchase car seats that are damaged or even recalled when you purchase used and this will not be effective in a car accident.

Infant seats are intended to hold babies until at least 1-year old AND at least 20 pounds, it is important to know the height and weight specifications on your particular model. These should be rear facing and if available placed in the back seat in the middle of the seat as opposed to the sides next to the window.

Once your child outgrows their infant car seat they are ready for a forward-facing child restraint or a convertible seat. Of course since the weight for most of these convertibles overlaps the infant seat so much many parents go to one of these before the child is out of the infant seat. This should NOT be done too early though since the harness system in these seats is always not the best for very small infants.

The final car seat for kids is the booster seat and the laws vary from state to state on how long a child will need to be in one of these. It is better to refer people to “best practices;” rather than state laws (which are the minimum in protection). If you have any questions on what the laws in your area are contact the local police or highway patrol and they will be more than happy to help you with this. If you also question if you are installing your child’s car seat wrong than they can also help you find an agency that will work with you to ensure that you are using it correctly. It would be better to go to a resource like http://www.safekidsweb.org/events/events.asp so they can find a specific place to have their restraint checked.  

Julia Howard
www.amberalertgps.com