A vehicle booster seat is a restraint system designed for older toddlers and children. Booster seats range from a simple backless style that works with the car's seat belt to full five-point harness styles that provide safety for children weighing up to 85 pounds. The problem with booster seats is that they are commonly misused by well-meaning yet uninformed parents, according to Wendy Thomas, a certified child passenger safety technician in Seattle, Wash.
Using the Wrong Booster
Backless and even high-back boosters without a five-point harness are not appropriate for young children. Thomas notes that at the absolute minimum, a child should be 4 years old and weigh 40 pounds to use a booster without a harness system. She explains that younger children simply lack the emotional maturity to sit properly when only the seat belt is used. Thomas recommends a harness booster until a child is 5 or 6 and then a high-back booster until age 8 to 10. Using the wrong booster puts a child at risk of injury or worse in the case of an accident.
Misplacement of Seat Belts
The Wall Street Journal reports that sometimes boosters don't fit children properly to do their job. High-back and backless boosters are designed to facilitate the proper placement of the car's seat belt. If the child doesn't fit well into the booster, the seat belt could be misplaced. Often, the lap belt falls on the child's abdomen, which could cause internal injury in the event of a crash.
Unrestrained Seat Becomes Projectile
A belt-positioning booster seat requires a child to be buckled in with the vehicle seat belt, but the seat is not secured on its own, as other types of car seats are. The Milwaukee Wisconsin Journal Sentinel reports that a booster can become a projectile in a crash if no child is in the seat. For example, parents who have one child and two vehicles may have a booster in each car for convenience. If the parent drives the car to work without the child in the seat, the seat should be buckled in as if a child were in it. Alternatively, the booster could be stored in the trunk when it is not in use.
References
- Wendy Thomas, Certified Child Passenger Safety Technician, Seattle, Washington
- The Wall Street Journal: New Questions on Booster Seats
- Milwaukee Wisconsin Journal Sentinel: Caution-A Booster Seat Can Injure You
- Britax: Frontier 85
