Question about child safety seat laws?

[stoopified]

My oldest boy turns 9 next week and weighs around 60 ponds,he says he is pld enough to quit using a child car seat.I googled
and IF I READ IT CORRECTLY,he is right.The way I read it,if you are over 5 years of age and over 40 pounds you no longer need acr seat/boodter while seated in the backseat.I would like other parents or those who KNOW to verify this if possible.My other son is about to turn 6 and is over 40 pounds,so IF I AM reading correctly,they are both able to ditch the safety seats. I don't want to endanger my boys or break the law BUT if they can leave the car seat behind,they are ready and so am I. TIA

[C&CDean]

Car seat? Hell, we didn't even have seat belts. I remember one time flying from the rear of our Rambler Ambassador wagon all the way up to the steel dash when dad slammed on the brakes. Good times.

[stoopified]

Car seat? Hell, we didn't even have seat belts. I remember one time flying from the rear of our Rambler Ambassador wagon all the way up to the steel dash when dad slammed on the brakes. Good times. ME,too,I have numerous scars from accidents when I was a child.I have a nasty scar over my lip where someone ran into my Grandma's car 91966?) and flung me around like arag doll. Don't really want that to happen to my sons

[badger]

I also didn't use a car seat much as long as I can remember. The trick was to sneak into the front seat before my older brother could if my dad was driving... my mother was the only one that strictly enforced the even/odd day rule to ensure that it was fair and not who was thinking fastest.

The key is seat belts and staying in the back seat till you are a certain height and certain weight before being in the front (due to those damn airbags). If you like government sites, this one says to keep them in the back seat till age 12. (http://www.safercar.gov/parents/RightSeat.htm)

Because the back seat was out of parents' watchful eye, I sometimes (because I was a dumb kid) would slip out of the seatbelt. The one time I got caught mom was furious. I imagine if I was in a carseat it would have been near-impossible for a kid to unbuckle entirely, so food for thought.

[8timechamps]

I'd definitely go by the weight, not the age. If he's over 50 lbs, he's good to go without a booster.

I think they're supposed to be over 75lbs to ride in the front seat. At least that's when I let my kids ride in the front.

[C&CDean]

I'd definitely go by the weight, not the age. If he's over 50 lbs, he's good to go without a booster.

I think they're supposed to be over 75lbs to ride in the front seat. At least that's when I let my kids ride in the front.

Heh. I've only got 1 kid under 200 lbs and he's in Afghanistan. They all rode car seats from the first time I brought them home from the hospital. I'm very much against seat belt laws, but I think you're a complete ****ing idiot if you don't wear one and strap your kids into a car seat PROPERLY.

[achiro]

I think at that weight you're probably ok but I think height has a little to do with it as well. The booster is more about getting the seatbelt to hit them in the right spot, so as long as it doesn't go across their face or neck you'd be fine. They also make those seatbelt keeper deals that are suppose to help with comfort for the kid if it doesn't fit quite right.

[FaninAma]

http://www.healthychildren.org/english/news/pages/aap-updates-recommendations-on-car-seats.aspx?nfstatus=401&nftoken=00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000&nfstatusdescription=ERROR%3a+No+local+token

I think the AAP recommendations are excessive but they are the official recommendations.

[8timechamps]

Heh. I've only got 1 kid under 200 lbs and he's in Afghanistan. They all rode car seats from the first time I brought them home from the hospital. I'm very much against seat belt laws, but I think you're a complete ****ing idiot if you don't wear one and strap your kids into a car seat PROPERLY.

Yeah, I haven't had a kid under 100lbs in years (not quite to the 200lb mark yet). There are two things that make my blood boil (having to do with kids in cars) 1) Car seats in the front seat, and 2) adults smoking in a car with a kid and the windows rolled up. ****ing idiots.

[East Coast Bias]

Stoops, I am a store manager for a national baby store chain. The rules vary by state. I would check your state's requirements. The local fire departments here are the experts. I would think a good solution would be to go to one of the low-profile backless booster seats. They use the vehicles lap belt and are a good transition to a regular seat belt. We sell them up here for around $2o. Basically it is a seat with notches for the lap belt to go through.

Dean is right, back in our day we didn't use car seats, but there must have been a lot of injuries we didn't hear about....