Car Seat Safety

For real, car seat safety is no joke!

And a lot of parents don't even realize their kids seats are incorrect

or maybe the kiddo is not buckled correctly.

I have no interest in putting anyone down or judging, but
I recently decided to write this because I saw someone I knew
with their baby, who was in a convertible car seat facing forward.
But they are LESS than a year old!

Do you say something?
Do you keep to yourself?

 I just kept to myself but I have thought about it multiple times since
because I keep thinking that if something happens and that baby gets hurt
I'm going to feel terrible for not saying anything!

I'm not just talking about a little baby either. Kids of all ages and sizes of car seat laws too. 

Car crashes are the leading cause of death for children ages 3-14! 

14? Ya, depending where you live, your older kids might still need to be in booster seats.

I am in Washington State. So mainly I am talking Washington State laws.

But check for your local state laws on your car seats.

So here are a few Washington State laws and guidelines:

-Infants under 1 year of age AND 20 pounds MUST remain rear facing

(this doesn't mean that on their 1st birthday it's time to turn them around!)

-It is recommended that infants and toddlers remain rear facing until they are at least 2 years old, (3 is even better if you can!) or until they reach the highest weight or height allowed by the manufacturer of the car seat.

 -Rear-facing car seats spread frontal crash forces over the whole area of a child's back, head and neck; they also prevent the head from snapping relative to the body in a frontal crash.

 -Rear-facing cars eats are NOT a safety risk just because a child's legs are bent at the knees or because they can touch/kick the vehicle seat.

Tyler's convertible car seat allows up to 36 inches tall and 40 pounds!

That's a lot when you really think about it. He is 18 months and just over 32 inches, 

which means he will be rear facing for a while still! 

All of these car seats allow for an extended time rear facing:

The following models all have above average height and/or weight limits for rear-facing use.  These may allow children to face the rear for safety longer than many other models.  Also listed are the rear-facing weight limits according to the manufacturer. Most of these models are taller than average, with the possible exception of the Cosco Scenera that is listed primarily as a value option.  Please verify these yourself in case of errors.  All current convertibles can be used for extended rear-facing beyond 20 pounds and models not listed may have ratings similar to the examples below.

Diono Radian (40 or 45 lbs., depending on the model.) Britax Marathon 70/Boulevard 70/Advocate 70 CS (40 lbs.) Safety 1st Complete Air (40 lbs.) The First Years True Fit models (35 lbs. but taller than most)

Graco MyRide 65 (40 lbs) Evenflo Triumph 65 (40 lbs.) Evenflo Momentum 65 (40 lbs.) Cosco Scenera (35 or 40 lbs)

For older kids and booster seats,
I've found some conflicting to what the (law enforcement) commercials say...

The commercials say 4'9" AND 80 pounds.
Well Zachary is not 4'9" and he is 10 years old! So he has been in a booster this entire time!
(Yes, he gets embarrassed, but I'd rather him be safe!)

But last week I started doing some research and found that according to Washington State Legislation
kids are only required until 8 years old OR 4'9".... Whichever comes first!

So I did let him give up the booster.

Again, this isn't meant to be a judgy post. I don't know everyone's story and why they choose
to do whatever it is that they choose to do. But I want to make people aware of
how common it is to incorrectly place car seats, or incorrectly placing the kids in the seats.
With Zach I turned him the instant he turned 1... I didn't know any different
and I wish someone would have told me to keep him rear facing for as long as I could.
So maybe this will help someone?

So what would you do?
Not just car seats, but if you see something you know to be incorrect or harmful
do you say anything? Or do you keep to yourself?

Sources:

http://www.car-safety.org/rearface.html

http://www.wainjurylaw.com/library/car-seat-safety-for-washington-state-infants-toddlers-and-kids.cfm

http://www.kingcounty.gov/healthservices/health/injury/traffic/seatbelts.aspx

http://www.nhtsa.gov/ChildSafety/step2