Question 6 year old in no back booster?

mlohry

New member
I have recently been reading that there is not much safety difference with a no back and high back booster. I just purchased an Amp for my 8 year old and love it, and was wondering if my 6 year old would be ok in one too? He is in an HB TB now and he sits passenger side 3rd row in our Ody and the belt always gets twisted going thru the belt guide of the TB, obviously a no back would cure that. I would continue to use the HB for long trips where he might fall asleep. My son is about 44 lbs and average height.
 
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Raegansmom4

New member
Actually, I've read just the opposite - that high back boosters provide side impact protection that a no-back booster can't. I personally wouldn't put a 6 year old in a no-back unless they were really, really tall (more the size of an average 8 yo). 5.5-6 yo is my comfort point for just moving out of a 5-point harness into a hbb.
 

daniele_ut

New member
I'd love a more definitive answer to this question as well. DS is one of only 2 kids in his kindy class that uses a HBB. He's staying in his for a while, but I frequently drive for field trips and wonder if I'm transporting his classmates safely in the LBBs their parents provide.
 

christineka

New member
There are studies that show a backless booster is just as safe as a high back. There are also studies shown that the high back is safer. I think that we will not know a definitive answer until someone tests only dedicated boosters, used properly and that's a study not likely to be done.
 

Chameleon

New member
There are studies that show a backless booster is just as safe as a high back. There are also studies shown that the high back is safer. I think that we will not know a definitive answer until someone tests only dedicated boosters, used properly and that's a study not likely to be done.

The study done that shows the HB booster is safer precedes the study that shows that there is no difference in safety between a HB booster and a LB booster.

Ultimately it is up to the parent as to what you feel is safe, however a booster is used to position the belt and anything extra is bonus until we have the data to show more. The recent study came out last year.
 

Defrost

Moderator - CPSTI Emeritus
As long as the seat belt still fits properly. The biggest problem I see with backless boosters for younger kids is that the shoulder belt doesn't fit right. Many backless boosters come with a strap to properly position the shoulder belt, but they are often frustrating and inconvenient.

Personally, I'd rather keep the HBB for the convenience of the built-in shoulder-belt positioner alone, over trying to finagle the strap-style ones that come with the backless booster.

It all depends on the vehicle and the child's size, though. If the shoulder belt in your particular vehicle fits your particular 6yo without needing a positioner, great.

The other consideration would be if the child still tends to fall asleep in the car, and needs the back to help her stay properly positioned while sleeping.
 

dawnp15

New member
My 5 year old that is more around the size of a 7yr old fits in the belt fine our vehicle, but she still falls asleep often and then slumps over. I mean really slumps over! She still rides in her Regent full time but i've just tried her out in a couple boosters.
 

Baylor

New member
Hmmm When I posted about using a LBB to go even around the block with my 6.5 yr old I was told no. Now I am thinking it would be just fine. He is 54lbs. I had the same thinking.. Only to school in back where I don't leave my neighborhood.

I will be watching the thread.. I am curious to what you decide to do.
 

An Aurora

Senior Community Member
Last year there were crash test videos of backless boosters, HBB with moderate SIP, and HBB with deep SIP. There was also a study showing a 70% increase in safety (I don't remember if it was reduction of head injuries or what exactly). Now this year there was a study showing they are equal in terms of safety. There's no definitive answer as to which provides the most safety and I think either choice would be appropriate.
 

carseatcoach

Carseat Crankypants
As always, we need to read the studies and decide how much weight we want to give them.

I have difficulty with the study that shows no difference between highbacked boosters and backlesses because they don't differentiate between combination seats and dedicated boosters. Almost all backless boosters are dedicated boosters and give a good belt fit. Many kids in highbacked boosters are in combination seats with the harnesses removed, and many of them give a very poor belt fit. I feel that the study was comparing in-season Honeycrisp apples to bruised and unripe oranges.

ETA that a 6yo in a backless is indeed a legal and safe option, but I continue to prefer highbacked boosters for that age.
 

sunnymw

New member
yeah i was wondering about that... whether the hbbs used were cosco hbbs or aios... because i would rather see a kiddo in a nbb than one of those options because of the dramatic improvement in lap belt fit.
 

LISmama810

Admin - CPS Technician
Hmmm When I posted about using a LBB to go even around the block with my 6.5 yr old I was told no.

That's not entirely accurate. http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=148388

I'm of the mind that as long as the belt fits properly, either a high-back or backless is an acceptable solution.

I do feel that a high-back offers more comfort for sleeping kids. I also feel that there MIGHT be a theoretical benefit of headwings in side-impact crashes, depending on the crash dynamics, so might as well use one if you can.

But I'm not going to flip out about someone using a backless as long as the child fits and uses it properly.
 

Kat_Momof3

New member
it depends on the size and maturity of the child for me. My oldest outgrew the Regent at 6.5yrs... he outgrew highback boosters at 7ish... and, by 8yrs old, he was already 4'9" tall and passed the 5-step test... so since he was mature enough (keeping me from ordering an ezonpro 86-Y for him as higher backed boosters such as the Monterey and others were not out yet), we went with a no-back.

However, his brother, who had to go backless at 7, has always been a big carseat sleeper... as soon as I was able, I ordered him the Monterey after it hit the market, so he could go back in his new, taller, highback...

My daughter is now 6 (will be 7 in March). While she is mature enough, she is only in the 50th percentiles for height... and (while she used to be all torso) her torso is not tall enough (and really not broad enough) for her to fit a backless booster remotely well (the shoulderbelt doesn't even hit her shoulder... it's on her face or on her arm, depending on the backless in question)

I really don't like using backless boosters unless a child is big enough to use it without the guide clips that some have, so she won't be in a backless for some time... probably till age 8-10.

I would take a big think on this one... and ask yourself these questions.

1. how does a backless booster fit your child?? (feel free to take your child and the backless boosters you have and try him out in them to see)

2. does your child sleep in the car?

3. Is your child mature enough not to have the physical reminder of the highback to remind him not to wiggle out of position?

4. What would you prefer him to ride in??

Statistics and studies aside... I know I felt quivers of fear at every seat transition the kids made... I see you are driving an Odyssey and so I'm wondering if the issue with the back is that the seatbelts come from the top of the vehicle seat, not from the wall of the car.

Flatter belt guides would solve this problem... and the Chicco Strada Booster or even the Evenflo Big Kid would possibly work better as their guides are flatter... the BK works better in my hubby's 2007 2-door cobalt than the turbo did for just this reason.
 

emandbri

Well-known member
My understanding is that there doesn't seem to be a difference in high back vs no back in a frontal crash but that a high back provides more protection in a side or off center crash.

A while back someone posted a bunch of crash videos from Europe and the no backs did not do well in side impact crashes. I'm keeping my son in a high back until he no longer fits.
 

carseatcoach

Carseat Crankypants
yeah i was wondering about that... whether the hbbs used were cosco hbbs or aios... because i would rather see a kiddo in a nbb than one of those options because of the dramatic improvement in lap belt fit.

Absolutely. I'd rather see a new 5yo in a Literider than an AOE in booster mode -- but honestly, I'd *really* rather see that 5yo in a highbacked Turbo.
 

christineka

New member
Hmmm When I posted about using a LBB to go even around the block with my 6.5 yr old I was told no. Now I am thinking it would be just fine. He is 54lbs. I had the same thinking.. Only to school in back where I don't leave my neighborhood.

It depends on who happens to post. The last time I posted, asking about my 10 year old in a backless, the advice was overwhelmingly in favor of high back until outgrown. On another day, I might be given the advice that at 10 (and now 11) years, she's perfectly safe in a backless.
 

carseatcoach

Carseat Crankypants
Hmmm When I posted about using a LBB to go even around the block with my 6.5 yr old I was told no. Now I am thinking it would be just fine. He is 54lbs. I had the same thinking.. Only to school in back where I don't leave my neighborhood.

There is no one-size-fits-all answer.

A 6.5yo who's been in a highback booster for 2 years and does great? I'd be fine with a well-fitting backless for a short drive.

A 6.5yo who has been almost exclusively harnessed? I wouldn't want to go straight from harness to backless booster.
 

Defrost

Moderator - CPSTI Emeritus
It depends on the situation, too. My interpretation of the OP's post was that using a backless instead of a HBB in their particular situation would likely result in less chance of misuse. Having to fiddle with a twisting shoulder belt every single time she gets in, with the child being in the 3rd row, increases the odds that the HBB could be used incorrectly, at least part of the time.

A correctly used backless trumps an incorrectly used HBB. If we're talking about two equally properly-used seats, then yes, I'd prefer to see the child in a HBB. But things are rarely that black-and-white, and in this case it wasn't a really a question of "which is safer in an ideal situation?" it was a question of "which is safer in a more complicated situation?"

I've currently got a a 4-year-old riding in a HBB in my car. Obviously it's not ideal; normally I'd say the 4-year-old would be safer harnessed. But our current situation isn't ideal; I'm rotating 7 kids through four seating positions, all with different needs, so we're making the best of this particular situation. She'll go back to riding in a harnessed seat in her mom's car in a few weeks.
 

canadiangie

New member
There is no one-size-fits-all answer.

A 6.5yo who's been in a highback booster for 2 years and does great? I'd be fine with a well-fitting backless for a short drive.

A 6.5yo who has been almost exclusively harnessed? I wouldn't want to go straight from harness to backless booster.

Thank you.
 

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