Booster with locked seat belt...

jacqui276

New member
Is it safe to lock a seat belt when buckling a child into a booster so that they don't move around/put the seat belt behind their back? I didn't think that it was (I would imagine that booster seats are not crash tested in this manner) and figure that a child who can't sit appropriately should just remain harnessed still.
 
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wendytthomas

Admin - CPST Instructor
Staff member
It's only a problem if the booster prohibits it, or if the car does. I mean, the immaturity is a huge issue, but the belt locking isn't a huge problem. I used to do it for Piper when she was young and in a booster (we needed to have her in a booster occasionally at 4.5 because I had knee surgery and could neither install seats nor drive, and my rides were not trustworthy with installations or use). When she switched to full time booster use we stopped.

Wendy
 

jacqui276

New member
Does the booster manual need to specifically say that it prohibits it or is not saying that it is an acceptable way to ride considered "not allowing" it?
 
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wendytthomas

Admin - CPST Instructor
Staff member
Pretty sure the few who do say they prohibit it. Everyone else is kind of meh about it.

The belt will lock anyway in a crash. I don't think it's a big deal.

Wendy
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
There was a big discussion on the CPSPList about this. After reading about the research that was done... Yeah, I'm not comfortable doing it every ride. For a beginning rider who needs a reminder the first few rides, or is just learning to sleep in a booster? Sure, I'm not THAT worried about it. But if a child truly NEEDS it in order to sit still, I'd heavily encourage a HWH ASAP.

(I've also stopped locking my own belt.)
 

Baylor

New member
I have a huge 4.5 yr old that still fits in GN so I am surprised it's out grown.

If it was GN why not just use it as booster??
I would at least try to get her to get a turbo or something. I would not be comfortable if I had to lock the belt. That to me says NOT READY

auto correct hates me
 

jacqui276

New member
I was thinking that locking the belt while in booster mode would fall under the same lines as installing a seat with latch and the seat belt where it looks safer but can actually cause issues in the event of an accident.
 
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ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
Could it be a CarGo? They were current a few years ago, 40 lb. limit, and they make an awful booster.
 

Kat_Momof3

New member
it's probably not the GN, I bet she has a Graco Ultra/Platinum Cargo that was still on the market as recently as a few years ago (or it's one that's expired) and he hit the 40lb weight limit.

A child putting the seatbelt behind him and wiggling that much is not ready for a booster, but ESPECIALLY a backless booster. Not sure what booster he's in, but if I'm wrong AND she's wrong... aka.. it was a nautilus, I would ask if I could help her reassemble it and explain the limits to her...

if however she's right and he outgrew his current seat, see if she's open to buying a new harnessed seat... offer to go seat shopping with her regardless... and get him a seat he fits in... either a harnessed one or at least a good dedicated highback booster.

He probably doesn't have a good fit at all in the high rise... it sits so low that it usually only gives a good belt fit on the BIG booster riders. I've seen it cross a six year old (MY 6yr old who was trying his brother's seat) so that the belt was slightly on the neck... and that's with an adjustable seatbelt in my van.
 

jacqui276

New member
I asked her and she said that the seat has a 55lbs weight limit..?

I will at least see if I can convince her to use a better fitting booster (preferably high back) if anything...
 

emandbri

Well-known member
There isn't a graco with a 55 lbs weight limit. Locking the seat belt used to be recommended back when there weren't seats with higher weight limits, when all the seats only went to 40 lbs and your 2 year old was 40 lbs it was the best option. Now that there are seats with higher weights it isn't recommended.
 

Shaunam

New member
How do you guys feel about an older, plenty mature child who prefers it locked for sensory reasons? Adrian insists it needs to be locked and will do it himself. He gets really upset if it doesn't lock. Like, he rode with my mom one day and she has locking latchplates in her new van and he freaked out.
 

joolsplus3

Admin - CPS Technician
How do you guys feel about an older, plenty mature child who prefers it locked for sensory reasons? Adrian insists it needs to be locked and will do it himself. He gets really upset if it doesn't lock. Like, he rode with my mom one day and she has locking latchplates in her new van and he freaked out.
Doesn't bother me to lock belts, in general. ELR mode is really for comfort... being as tightly attached to the vehicle as you can be minimizes injury risk, but no one LIKES to ride that way (well, most of us, not all the time. I love it when I'm trying to snooze :cool:), so they invented ELR to maximize comfort to passengers. With new belt systems and all the pyrotechnics they are inventing to make ELR safer, there may be some warnings in some cars in some seating positions not to lock the belts, so it is prudent to read the manual and make sure it's ok.
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
It was on CPSPList. I'm on my phone and copy/paste is hard... I'm pretty sure someone has quoted it all out before, I can try to find it or try to copy/paste.
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
March 7.

At University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute, we researched the practiceof switchingseat belts to the locking mode when used with boosters as part of the development of an updated version of the UMTRI document on best practices in child passenger safety (coming soon.) When speaking with several vehicle manufacturers, most were against the practiceof lockingseatbelt with boosters becauseseatbelts are designed to allow the torso to rotate past vertical in a frontal crash, which acts to prevent submarining below the lap part of the belt when there's no crotch strap. When we have tested boosters with the 6YO and 10YO dummies, they definitely generate sufficient belt loads to activate the locking mechanism in a severe crash. I suspect that some of the reports of nonlockingbelts may be from a combination of low occupant mass andlow crash severity. The suggestion to lock the seatbelt with boosters to dealwithwiggly out-of-position kids arose years ago when there weren't higher weight harness products available. Thesewouldbe the best choice if a child can't sit properly in a booster seat. Since one of the key curriculum directives is to follow the manufacturers' directions, if the manufacturers don't tell you to lock the seatbelt with a booster, CPST's shouldn't be suggesting it as an option for parents.

Kathy Klinich University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute
 

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