Figuring out how to keep your children safe in the car may seem overwhelming, especially with all the different types of car seats. If you want to know when you should switch your child from a rear-facing car seat to a front-facing seat, you may have to consult both the manufacturer’s instructions and local regulations. In Louisiana, there is a recent law that includes new rules for when children may use different types of car seats.
According to a KSLA News report, there are updated rules for car seats in the Louisiana Child Passenger Safety Law. Under the new requirements, you must keep your child in a rear-facing car seat until he or she is two years old. Additionally, you may not begin using a front-facing car seat until your child has outgrown the rear-facing seat’s height or weight restrictions.
The new law also provides instructions for when you may move your child into a booster seat and when you may stop using a car seat entirely. Once your child has outgrown the height or weight of the forward-facing car seat, you must buckle him or her into a booster seat. The booster seat requirement lasts until your child is nine. However, he or she must also outgrow the booster seat and meet other requirements before it is legal to use the vehicle’s standard seat and belt. Your child must be tall enough for his or her knees to bend at the front of the seat while his or her back is against the backrest. The seatbelt should fit around your child’s hips and across his or her chest. If the seat belt rests across the abdomen or the neck, your child may still require a booster seat. You may not have your child in the front passenger seat until he or she is 13 years old.
This is general information about child car seats and is not intended to provide legal advice.