Review of United States Car Safety Seat State Laws: Lessons Learned

Car safety seat laws and professional guidance, such as the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Child Passenger Safety recommendations, are essential for parents and health care providers when choosing an appropriate car seat. This project reviewed car safety seat state laws for commonalities, vari...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal for nurse practitioners 2024-05, Vol.20 (5), p.104989, Article 104989
Main Authors: Davis, Renée L., Potts, Brittany L.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Age
Automobile safety
car seat safety
child safety
Children & youth
Fatalities
Health care
infant safety
Injuries
Legislation
Medical personnel
Parents & parenting
Pediatrics
policy
Safety
Seat belts
State laws
Terminology
Vehicles
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Summary:Car safety seat laws and professional guidance, such as the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Child Passenger Safety recommendations, are essential for parents and health care providers when choosing an appropriate car seat. This project reviewed car safety seat state laws for commonalities, variations, and themes. Car safety seat laws for all 50 states and the District of Columbia (N = 51) were reviewed through electronic sources. Data collection focused on gathering common legislative language in each car safety seat grouping. All car safety seat laws were based on age, height, weight, manufacturer limit, any combination of these, or were not specified. The most common category result was “age only” except for rear-facing car safety seats, which was “not specified.” Variations in clarity, terminology, and completeness were found. Owing to great variance in AAP and state laws, health care providers should use AAP guidelines, know their specific state’s car safety seat laws, and advocate for legislation to meet or exceed AAP guidelines. •Car seat safety laws and professional guidance, such as the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Child Passenger Safety recommendations, are essential for parents and pediatric health care providers when choosing an appropriate car seat.•The most common result was “age only” except for rear-facing car seat safety, which was “not specified.”•Pediatric health care providers should use AAP guidelines, know their specific state’s car seat safety laws, and advocate for legislation to meet or exceed AAP guidelines.
ISSN:1555-4155
1878-058X
DOI:10.1016/j.nurpra.2024.104989