The Car Seats and Seat Belts Checklist: What to Do and What to Skip
Car Seats and Seat Belts: what is worth doing, what is worth avoiding, and when to stop and see a doctor.
Using the right car seat, booster seat or seat belt for each person in the vehicle, every trip. Motor vehicle crashes are a leading cause of death for children in the US, and correctly used car seats and seat belts greatly reduce the risk.
Key takeaways
- Rear-facing: keep children rear-facing as long as possible, until they reach the highest weight or height the seat allows
- Forward-facing with harness: after outgrowing the rear-facing limits of their seat
- Most useful single change: Read the car seat manual and the vehicle manual together.
- Commonest mistake: Placing a rear-facing seat in front of an active airbag.
- See a doctor if any of the signs under "When to speak to a doctor" below apply to you.
Do
- Read the car seat manual and the vehicle manual together
- Get your installation checked by a certified child passenger safety technician
- Register your car seat so you hear about recalls
- Buckle up on every trip, in every seat, including short trips
Do not
- Placing a rear-facing seat in front of an active airbag
- Using a car seat that has been in a moderate or severe crash, or one past its expiration date
- Moving a child to the next stage too early
- Putting a child in a car seat while wearing a bulky winter coat
The numbers behind the list
The list is built from the numbers below, which come from the bodies cited at the end.
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| Rear-facing | keep children rear-facing as long as possible, until they reach the highest weight or height the seat allows |
| Forward-facing with harness | after outgrowing the rear-facing limits of their seat |
| Booster seat | until the seat belt fits properly, usually at about 4 feet 9 inches (145 cm) tall, often between ages 8 and 12 |
| Back seat | children under 13 should ride in the back seat |
| Good seat belt fit | lap belt across the upper thighs, shoulder belt across the chest and shoulder, not the neck |
If you change one thing
Read the car seat manual and the vehicle manual together. Start there. The rest of the list keeps.
Related topics
- Teen Driving Safety: What the Evidence Actually Says (Teen Health)
- Neck Pain: What the Evidence Actually Says (Back and Posture)
- The Evidence on Computer Workstation Setup, Without the Hype (Workplace Health)
- Concussion: What Published Guidance Supports (Brain Health)
Where to go next
- Car Seats and Seat Belts: Just the Figures
- Car Seats and Seat Belts: Sorting the Evidence From the Noise
- Car Seats and Seat Belts — the reference entry
- Injury Prevention: The Complete Guide
- The Evidence on Drowning Prevention, Without the Hype
- Fall-Proofing Your Home: Sorting the Evidence From the Noise
When to speak to a doctor
Call 911 after any crash with injuries, and get a child checked by a doctor after a crash even if they seem fine. Never leave a child alone in a car; call 911 if you see a child alone in a hot vehicle.
Where this comes from
- NHTSA — Car Seats and Booster Seats
- American Academy of Pediatrics — Car Seats: Information for Families
- CDC — Child Passenger Safety
How this page was put together
Every figure, recommendation and warning above is taken from the guidance named in Where this comes from. Nothing on this page is inferred, summarized or generalized beyond what those bodies publish: where they give a number, it is their number, and where they are silent, so are we. Pages are rebuilt whenever the underlying record changes. Sign-off by a named clinician, where it has happened, is shown at the top of the page along with the date.
Medical disclaimer
This article is general information, not medical advice. It cannot account for your own history, medication or circumstances. Always speak to your doctor, pharmacist or another qualified health professional before making changes that affect your treatment, and never delay seeking medical advice because of something you have read here. In an emergency, call 911.
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