Hi, I have been on a bunch of websites to try and understand the California Booster Seat Law, but all of them say something different. How old does a child HAVE to be in order to ride in a booster seat with the high back? Does he/she also HAVE to weigh a certain amount? Some booster seats say 30 pounds and over, so i'm totally unsure about the requirements. One website said that kids have to be over 35 pounds, the other website said 40 pounds... I'm totally CONFUSED!
If you have a child in a booster seat, how much did they weigh when you started them in it and how old were they?
Thanks!
I talked with the pediatrician and she said 4 years old AND 40 pounds. Guess we have a ways to go =)
I just moved out of CA. From what I remember, to be in a booster seat, they have to be at least 4 years old or 40 pounds.
Call your local police station's non-emergency line and ask to speak with their traffic officer so that they can explain child safety seat laws to you. That's the easiest way to get the most current and accurate information, I promise.
I have always thought it was 4 years old AND 40 lbs. My youngest is 5 1/2 and about 37 lbs. He still uses the 5 point harness and will stay there as long as I can get away with it since it is safer. I agree with you, it is really confusing to find a straight answer. Try calling the CHP or your local fire department since they do car seat checks. : )
I wouldn't put a kid in anything but a five point harness until they can safely sit properly in the seatbelt with a booster, my daughter was 6 when we switched. It's more about maturity then size, and each booster may have it's own height and weight minimums, as car seats do. Safety first!
Check this website out for carseat/booster seat info:
http://www.nhtsa.gov/Safety/CPS/
I think they have to be 4 years old AND 40 lbs not one or the other to go into a booster seat.
I've heard the 4 years old and 40 lbs also. My just-turned-3 year old is around 50 lbs and over 40" tall, so I wasn't sure what to do either. I visited the local CHP office and talked to one of the officers who does the car seat inspections. He said that children are safer in a 5 point harness seat, but my little guy would probably be fine in a booster. He said the concern of smaller children in a booster is that they aren't always mature enough not to unbuckle themselves or otherwise get out from the seat belt. So, we've left him in a 5 point harness seat with a high weight limit, but use a booster in limited situations and always talk to him about not playing with the seat belt.
There is not a law for a minimum height and weight defining when children can be in a booster seat. In other words, they don't have to be a certain age or weight to legally stop using a 5 point harness and switch to a booster instead. All booster seats have a minimum height and weight for which you can start using them, but none have a minimum age.
Booster seats are generally not as safe as a five point harness and are not recommended for small children who still fit in harnessed seats. My son just turned five and we got him a high back booster to use when riding in a friend's car or with his grandparents. In my car and in my husband's car, he still sits in a five point harness and will until he outgrows the seat. He is about 45" tall and weighs 47 pounds. And honestly, I don't feel he's as safe in the booster as when he's fully harnessed.
In California, a child under 8 years old OR under 4'9" must be in some form of child restraint system (harness or booster). They recommend that kids remain rear-facing until age two; legally, they must be rear facing until they are one year old AND over 20 pounds.
I put the grand kids in a booster seat at around 3 years of age. We could fit the seat belt since it weaved through the slits in the top of either side to hold the belt across their chests in the correct area.
I think if the seat fits the child then they can sit in it if you want them to.
If the seat belt goes across the legs and not the tummy and then across the chest like it is supposed to and not the neck then it fits them correctly.
If you have questions and are still unsure call your local fire department and ask them if they do child car seat checks. Our local fire department often has a day where they take over the parking lot of a local grocery store and do car seat checks and give away tons of free seats.
California’s law requires children age 8 or under who are less than 4'9" in height to be secured in a rear seat in a child passenger restraint system, there is no separate booster seat law.
The law specifically states a child who is under 8 years of age must be secured in an appropriate child passenger restraint system meeting applicable federal motor vehicle safety standards. Because there are so many variations in height and weight of children at any specific age it is up to you, the parent, to figure out which seat is the best fit age/height/pound wise for your child under 8, that is where "appropriate" child passenger restraint system comes into play.
To determine this you need to research online, or read instruction manuals in stores. Remember, booster seats were designed for children who have outgrown regular safety car seats, and that happens at different ages with different children. Depending on the model, boosters fit children from 30-40 lbs. as you have found, up to 80-125 lbs. Some manufacturers require a minimum age of 3 or 4, and the driver or parent may be cited for misuse if the child is under the minimum age or weight specified on the label or if a booster is used with just a lap belt and not the harness, so YOU have to do your research to fit your child with the right one.
My guy was 31 lbs, his booster seat fits children a minimum of 30 lbs, and we started using it 4 months before his 3rd birthday. Even though his carseat was supposed to fit until he was 40 lbs he was stretching the limits of his comfort, and an accident with his carseat in the car (he was not in it) rendered it unusable according to Triple A and the police officer at the scene so we switched. When his neck is taller than the neck part of the headrest he can then use just the booster seat without the back/headrest.
Hope this helps clarify the confusion ツ
