Child Passenger Safety
Correctly using the appropriate car seat or booster seat significantly reduces the risk of serious or fatal injury to children in the event of a motor vehicle crash.
Alaska law requires
- Children less than 1 year of age or children older than 1 year but less than 20 pounds to be secured in a rear-facing car seat
- Children 1 to 4 years weighing over 20 pounds to be properly secured in an appropriate child restraint
- Children over 4 and less than 8 years of age who are under 4’9 and less than 65 pounds to be properly secured in a car seat or booster seat
Correctly using the appropriate car seat or booster seat significantly reduces the risk of serious or fatal injury to children in the even of a motor vehicle crash.
Choosing a car seat
Birth – 12 Months
Your child under age 1 should always ride in a rear-facing car seat. There are different types of rear-facing car seats:
- Infant-only seats can only be used rear-facing.
- Convertible and all-in-one car seats typically have higher height and weight limits for the rear-facing position, allowing you to keep your child rear-facing for a longer period of time.
1 – 3 Years
Keep your child rear-facing as long as possible. It’s the best way to keep him or her safe. Your child should remain in a rear-facing car seat until he or she reaches the top height or weight limit allowed by your car seat’s manufacturer. Once your child outgrows the rear-facing car seat, your child is ready to travel in a forward-facing car seat with a harness and tether.
1 – 3 Years
Keep your child rear-facing as long as possible. It’s the best way to keep him or her safe. Your child should remain in a rear-facing car seat until he or she reaches the top height or weight limit allowed by your car seat’s manufacturer. Once your child outgrows the rear-facing car seat, your child is ready to travel in a forward-facing car seat with a harness and tether.
4 – 7 Years
Keep your child in a forward-facing car seat with a harness and tether until he or she reaches the top height or weight limit allowed by your car seat’s manufacturer. Once your child outgrows the forward-facing car seat with a harness, it’s time to travel in a booster seat, but still in the back seat.
4 – 7 Years
Keep your child in a forward-facing car seat with a harness and tether until he or she reaches the top height or weight limit allowed by your car seat’s manufacturer. Once your child outgrows the forward-facing car seat with a harness, it’s time to travel in a booster seat, but still in the back seat.
8 – 12 Years
Keep your child in a booster seat until he or she is big enough to fit in a seat belt properly. For a seat belt to fit properly the lap belt must lie snugly across the upper thighs, not the stomach. The shoulder belt should lie snugly across the shoulder and chest and not cross the neck or face. Remember: your child should still ride in the back seat because it’s safer there.
8 – 12 Years
Keep your child in a booster seat until he or she is big enough to fit in a seat belt properly. For a seat belt to fit properly the lap belt must lie snugly across the upper thighs, not the stomach. The shoulder belt should lie snugly across the shoulder and chest and not cross the neck or face. Remember: your child should still ride in the back seat because it’s safer there.
Center for Safe Alaskans’ Child Passenger Safety (CPS) Program supports state laws in keeping children safely secured each time they travel in a motor vehicle by promoting car seat and booster seat use. We offer individual appointments with parents and caregivers to educate them on the proper use and installation of their car seat. Click here to schedule an appointment.
For families in financial need we also offer a limited number of car seats and booster seats for a nominal donation. Our CPS instructors give presentations statewide to groups, schools, agencies and institutions to promote proper transportation of children. Along with our partners, Safe Alaskans hosts many public car seat check-up events statewide every year. Safe Alaskans is a lead agency in the Alaska CPS Statewide Coalition to help coordinate CPS activities statewide.
Resources
Car Seats
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