SUMMER UPDATES
July 22, 2009
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Tentative School Calendar 2009-2010
New Booster
Seat Law
Minnesota children under age 8 or shorter than 4 feet 9
inches tall must be in a child safety seat or booster seat,
effective July 1. Under the booster law, children cannot use a seat
belt alone until they are age 8 or 4 feet 9 inches tall — whichever
comes first. To ensure child safety, the Minnesota Department of
Public Safety (DPS) recommends parents keep children in a booster
based on their height, rather than their age.
We've included a handbook at the link below but if you'd like more detailed information, visit the DPS web site at www.buckleupkids.state.mn.us.
Booster seats lift a child up allowing for proper seat belt fit —
the lap belt low and snug across the hips and the shoulder belt
snug across the middle of the chest. Typically children around age
4 and more than 40 pounds are ready for a booster, upon outgrowing
a forward-facing child safety seat.
“Boosters are common sense safety tools to ensure children are riding as safe as possible in a vehicle,” says Heather Darby, DPS child passenger safety coordinator. “Children that are shorter than 4 feet 9 simply aren’t tall enough to use a seat belt alone, if they do, a belt may do more damage than good in case of a crash.”
DPS reports only 30 percent of Minnesota children use boosters.
In the last five years in Minnesota, 2004–2008, 18 children
passengers ages 4–8 were killed in crashes and 3,047 were injured.
Child passenger safety officials say the importance of boosters is
underscored by death and injuries associated with poor seat belt
fit — including ejection, internal decapitation and serious
abdominal damage.
Darby says children are not ready to ride in a seat belt alone
until they can sit with their back against the vehicle seat, knees
bent completely over the seat and feet touching the floor. Darby
says a sign that a seat belt does not fit properly is if the child
wraps the shoulder belt behind them to avoid the belt rubbing
against their neck.
