Safe Kids Baltimore

Child Passenger Safety

New Child Passenger Safety Law
Baby Passenger Safety
Toddlers and Pre-Schoolers
Is Your Child Ready for a Booster Seat?
When is Your Child Ready to Ride Without a Booster Seat?
For More Information

New Child Passenger Safety Law

Maryland's Child Passenger Safety Law has changed. (effective June 30, 2008):

Every child under 8 years old must ride in a booster seat or other appropriate child safety seat. Child safety seat includes infant seats, convertible seats, forward facing seats, booster seats or other federally approved safety devices.
Every child from 8 to 16 years old who is not secured in a car seat must be secured in the vehicle's seat belt.

Protect your child as they ride! The back seat is the safest. Children under 13 years old should ride in the back seat.

For more information call Maryland Kids in Safety Seats (KISS) at 1-800-370-SEAT or 410-767-6016. Or visit them online at www.mdkiss.org.

Babies ride rear-facing until they are at least 1 year AND 20 pounds.

When they outgrow their infant carrier they can ride rear-facing in a convertible seat. Keeping children rear-facing until 30-35 pounds, as most convertible seats allow, is the safest for your baby.

Toddlers and pre-schoolers ride in a forward-facing carseat with a harness until child is at least 40 pounds or until they reach the seat's height and weight limit. See label on seat.


Convertible Seat	Toddler/Booster Seat

This includes convertible seats and combination toddler booster seats with a harness.

Your child is ready for a BOOSTER SEAT when they weigh over 40 pounds.


Low-Back Booster Seat	High-Back Booster Seat

Booster seats help position your child so the lap/shoulder seat belt fits them correctly. With a booster seat, the lap belt fits over their hips and touches the top of their legs and the shoulder belt is centered on the shoulder and chest and not across their face and neck.

A backless booster can be used if the seats of your car are high and your child’s head does not go above the seat.
A high-back booster is needed if the seats of your car are not high and do not have head restraints (headrests).

When is my child ready to ride without a booster seat?

Take the 5-Step Test*:

Teen sitting in back seat with regular seat belt

( Have your child sit in the car using the lap/shoulder belt without their booster seat to take the test)

Does your child sit all the way back with hips against the auto seat?
Do your child’s knees bend comfortably at the edge of the auto seat?
Does the shoulder belt cross the shoulder between the neck and the arm?
Is the lap belt as low on the hips as possible and touching the thighs?
Can the child stay seated like this for the whole trip?

If you answered “no” to any of these questions, then your child still needs to use a booster seat to ride safely in the car.

Seat belts do not usually fit kids safely until they are 4’9” tall, weigh about 80 pounds and are about 8-12 years old.

The back seat is the safest place to ride. Children should ride in the back seat until they are at least 13 years old!

*5-Step Test taken from SafetyBeltSafe USA

For Inquiries Contact Maryland Kids in Safety Seats online or by phone: www.mdkiss.org / 1-800-370-SEAT

This page was last updated on: August 14, 2009.

For more information contact Safe Kids Baltimore at 410-328-7532 or safekidsbaltimore@umm.edu or visit Safe Kids Worldwide