Booster seat safety

[momofmf]

Booster seat safety

My daughter is currently using the Kangaroo booster seat. I LOVE this seat and had planned to leave her in it for a while longer. I recently noticed that the top of the seat is at the middle of her ears. She is 6 years old, 70 pounds, 4 feet 4inches tall. Does this mean its time for her to move to the regular vehicle seat?
Please advise.
Thanks,
Brenda

 

[Caviller]

Some options-

If the tips of her ears are above the top of the back of the high back booster, she may indeed be too tall. Unless you have vehicle headrests which can be positioned to provide head/neck support, she may be increasing at risk of a whiplash injury as she gets taller.

Your daughter may indeed fit in a vehicle lap&should belt without a booster at this point. Still, most recommend some type of booster seat until about 8 years or 80 pounds.

For more information on when to move out of a booster, you might check our FAQ link above, or click here:

user.mc.net/~carseat/faq.html#Q9

You might also try the five step test here:

www.carseat.org/Resources/630.htm

If your vehicle does have headrests for the back seat, you might consider switching to an inexpensive backless booster like the Evenflo Rightfit (less than $25 at ToysRUs/BabiesRUs). This model is effective and also a bit less visible to older kids who may not want to be seen in a booster seat

 

[momofmf]

Re: Some options-

THANKS!
The first website I went to (babiesrus) said the seat was only good for 40-60 pounds but then I went to evenflo.com and they show it up to 80 pounds.
My van does have the neck support but I want her to be as safe as she possible can so I'll go get this in the am.
Thanks again!
B

 

[Caviller]

Great!

I should have been a bit more clear about the neck support also. The headrest must be able to adjusted so that it is at the back of the head. If the child is in a high back booster and is too tall for it, it is quite likely that the back of the booster will be thick enough such that the headrest on the seat could not be adjusted properly, depending on make and model.

If you install the new booster and have any concerns, please seek out a trained, local technician. These can often be found at police departments, fire departments, hospitals, health departments, etc.

Good luck!