New Carseat Law-Federal or just Illinois?

Tay N Evie's Mom

DIS Veteran
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Jul 12, 2001
Messages
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I just found out that there is a new law (as of July 3, 2003) in Illinois that any child under the age of 8 has to be in a car seat or booster seat. I was wondering if this is just for Illinois or if it's Federal. If it's Federal then I'll have to make sure that I rent car seats in Florida-my twins are 5.
 
Not in New York. Any child the age of three or under has got to be in a car seat.
 
See the Florida Highway Patrol's "What Florida Law says about..." page at http://www.fhp.state.fl.us/html/Floridalaw/fllaw.html
<blockquote>What Florida Law says about...
Child Restraint Requirements
-- All children under the age of 18 must be buckled up while riding in any car, pickup truck, or van on Florida's roads, no matter where they are sitting in the vehicle.
-- Children through the age of 3 must be secured in a federally approved child-restraint seat.
-- Children ages 4 through 5 must be secured by either a federally approved child-restraint seat or a safety belt.
-- Drivers are responsible for buckling up the child.
-- The cost to a violator will be a minimum of $60.00 plus $10.00 court costs. </blockquote>
 
Unless your twins are very tall, I'd still consider bringing their booster seats. Most children are not large enough for an adult seatbelt until between 7 - 9 years old. Here are the guidelines for determining if your twins are large enough for a regular shoulder/lapbelt combination.

When can my child be in a regular seatbelt without a booster?

Children are not ready to be in a regular lap/shoulder seatbelt until (guidelines from car-safety.org):

They are tall enough so that their legs bend at the knees at the edge of the seat; and
They are mature enough to remain seated with their backs flat against the back of the seat and not slouch; and
The lap belt sits high on the thighs or low on the hips (NOT on their tummy!); and
The shoulder belt crosses the shoulder and chest (NOT on their arms or neck!); and
Each passenger must have their own lap and shoulder belt! Never allow children to share a seatbelt.

Some organizations will also give limits like 80 or 100 pounds, 4'9" in height or 8 years old. These are rough guidelines, not absolute limits. The criteria above are most important.

It may be easiest to bring backless booster for your twins. These are relatively small and inexpensive. They should slip into your luggage and quickly install in a rental car.

Good luck and have a wonderful trip,
Jennifer
 

I don't know about other states. I believe that was just in Illinois. It was signed into law by Gov. Blagoavich(sp?) at the end of June.
 
There is no federal car seat law. The laws are determined by each state. So if you are in FL you would have to abide by their law, if you are IL you abide by theirs.
 
In PA it is now 8 yrs or 80lbs...personally I think it's great...I can't believe the people who don't buckle up their kids properly...some even allow them in the front seat! I believe these law are state legislated like the seat belt laws but there are federal guide lines or suggestions...I work in government...and even thought the "state" may make the laws they are often based on what the feds puts out..
 
Thanks for the info guys. I logged on today specifically to find this info. I know that here in ny it is under 3 needs a carseat but I was wondering about fla. Asd always the dis has the answers.
 
Another Ill. resident here and I hadn't heard of the new law. What do you do if your not quite 8 yr old is too tall for any car seat - even the booster type. He turns 8 in Sept. so I'm not too worried but a neighbor (state trooper) told me he was fine in seat belt and too tall for all seats/boosters she had heard of. He sits in the seat belt fine - it does not cross his neck but his shoulder just like mine. HMMM - why set an age limit when kids are all so different -a size limit makes much more sense.
 
To perpetualplanner,

I'd post your question about booster laws on the following forum:
http://www.car-seat.org

There are many certified technicians that frequently check that site. Come to think of it, I believe the person who donates his time to run that site is a certified tech in Illinois. What a coincidence? You could either ask directly on the site or click the link at the top for FREE car seat checks. I think most (if not all) are in various parts of Illinois so you could find out in person if you'd rather! I'm jealous, I'm in California and it is very hard to find sites for carseat checks!!

Good luck,
Jennifer
 
http://www.carseat.org/
JennsBabySky, this organization is based in CA. They should be able to help you. They are one of the largest in the US and they are always conducting car seat checks. I used to be on the board of this group.
 
the state trooper that told me he was too tall for any she had seen IS ae certified car seat checkperson. She trains other police in how to do the checks so I'm sure she was accurate. I'm not worried about my son in the car since she told me that but the law seems crazy to use an age and not a height. Just hope I don't get pulled over in the next 2 months.
 














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