Do we need our own booster seat?

[sharen24]

If we use taxi service from our WDW hotel to the other hotels and parks within WDW, do we need to bring our own booster seat for DS-3 (almost 4, 41" tall and 40 lbs)?

 

[Tara]

If we use taxi service from our WDW hotel to the other hotels and parks within WDW, do we need to bring our own booster seat for DS-3 (almost 4, 41" tall and 40 lbs)?

I think Florida law requires children under 4 to be in a seat not a booster. And it does require children to be restrained in any car, even taxis. Some taxis do provide seats, but the bell stand may need to call for one that has a seat available.

 

[abc999]

We rode a taxi from the YC to POR last year and were told car seats were not required.

 

[Tara]

We rode a taxi from the YC to POR last year and were told car seats were not required.

What you were told is not true. (I don't want to go as far as saying the cab driver lied because maybe he or she was misinformed.)

Florida law requires children to be restrained in a safety seat (car seat or booster, depending on age) no matter what type of vehicle they are in, and this includes taxis. The law stipulates that children in motor vehicles are subject to this law and excludes the following from the definition of "motor vehicle":

(2) As used in this section, the term "motor vehicle" means a motor vehicle as defined in s. 316.003 that is operated on the roadways, streets, and highways of the state. The term does not include:

(a) A school bus as defined in s. 316.003(45).

(b) A bus used for the transportation of persons for compensation, other than a bus regularly used to transport children to or from school, as defined in s. 316.615(1)(b), or in conjunction with school activities.

(c) A farm tractor or implement of husbandry.

(d) A truck having a gross vehicle weight rating of more than 26,000 pounds.

(e) A motorcycle, moped, or bicycle.

While some states do exempt taxis, Florida does not.
I would suspect that there are some taxi drivers who want fares but don't have a seat who will lie in order to get those fares.

And just to confirm for the OP, here's the first section of the law, which stipulates children through age 3 must be in a separate carrier or integrated child seat:

(1)(a) Every operator of a motor vehicle as defined herein, while transporting a child in a motor vehicle operated on the roadways, streets, or highways of this state, shall, if the child is 5 years of age or younger, provide for protection of the child by properly using a crash-tested, federally approved child restraint device. For children aged through 3 years, such restraint device must be a separate carrier or a vehicle manufacturer's integrated child seat. For children aged 4 through 5 years, a separate carrier, an integrated child seat, or a seat belt may be used.