When I started this blog several years ago, I had no idea it would grow into such a large resource on car seat safety. Here are a collection of articles to help parents, grandparents, and all caretakers choose, install, and use the right car seats for children. Please share this page and the articles contained within with fellow parents and caretakers interested in following best practices. For recommendations and reviews of a range of infant, convertible, combination, and booster seats, see the US Recommended Car Seats and Canadian Recommended Car Seats pages. For best practices related to overall auto safety, particularly in terms of driving techniques, vehicle selection, and road road design, see here.
On Best Practices in Car Seat Safety in Countries around the World
- Why Can’t We Buy 55-Pound Rear-Facing Car Seats in the US Like Sweden?
- What are the safety differences, if any, between Swedish car seats and American ones? (With a Britax Max-Wise Review)
- In Sweden, When is a Booster Seat as Safe as a Forward-Facing Seat?
- Swedish Car Seat Safety – Frequently Asked Questions Answered By Swedes
- A Guide to Swedish Child Car Seat Safety for Americans
- Norway: Where (Almost) No Children Die in Car Crashes
- Swedish Car Seat Safety: Which Car Seats are Dangerous to Swedes?
- US vs Swedish Car Safety: How Many Children Die from Crashes Each Year?
On Best Practices By School Age (Preschool, Kindergarten, Elementary Years)
- Is it Safe, Legal, or OK for My Elementary-School-Aged Child to Sit in the Front Seat? (No, Yes, and Rarely, and Here’s Why)
- Should Kindergartners Use Seatbelts, Boosters or Forward-Facing Seats (Or Should They Still Rear-Face)?
- What are the Best Car Seats for Preschoolers (And Why Should They Rear-Face)?
- Is It Important to Use Car Seats in Your Neighborhood or Over Short Trips in Town? Yes!
- The 2020 Guide to Car Seat State Laws (US) vs Best Practices
On Rear-Facing, Forward Facing, Boostering, Row Positions, and Seat Belt Safety
Rear-Facing
- 3 out of 4 parents forward-face too early: Don’t join them!
- The Orphan Seat: 3 Huge Rear-Facing Advantages for Kids
- Why Rear-Face Your Car Seats Past Age 2?
- Rear-Facing vs. Forward-Facing Car Seats: What Happens in a Crash?
- Top 5 Tips for Surviving Extended-Rear Facing with Toddlers
- Poor NHTSA Standards Encourage Seat Back Fatalities in Car Seats (Another Reason to Rear Face)
Forward-Facing and Boostering
- When Is it Safe to Switch From Forward-Facing to a Booster Car Seat?
- When Can Kids Stop Using Boosters? A Guide to the 5 Step Test
- 2014 IIHS Booster Ratings: What’s the Safest Booster?
- 5 signs your child isn’t ready for an adult seat belt (and should stay in a booster seat)
Optimal Row and Seat Positions
- Which Car Seat Side or Position is Safest, Outboard or Center?
- Is the Third Row Safe for Children, Car Seats, and Passengers?
- When Can Children Ride In the Front Seat? For Safety, Not Until 13!
- Is it Safe, Legal, or OK for My Elementary-School-Aged Child to Sit in the Front Seat? (No, Yes, and Rarely, and Here’s Why)
On Car Seat Installation, LATCH, Seat Belt, Tethering, and Clothing Safety
- 5 Big Mistakes You’re Probably Making With Your Car Seat (and How to Fix Them)
- How To and Why Tether When Forward Facing Car Seats
- How To and Why Tether When Rear Facing Car Seats
- 3 Safe Ways to Dress Your Child in a Car Seat This Winter
- When to use seat belts vs. LATCH for car seats, and which is safer?
Buying On A Budget, New Buying Tips, Space Comparisons, Crash and Replacement Rules, And Your Hospital Rights
- The Best Car Seats under $200 for 2018: Which Infant Seats, Convertibles, Combinations, and Boosters Follow Best Practices?
- Top 7 Reasons to Buy a New Car Seat, With Explanations
- Leaving the hospital with your baby: Which car seat?
- The Best Rear-facing Convertible Car Seats for Leg Room
- The Best Car Seats for Extended Rear-Facing in the United States by Weight
- After a Crash or Accident, Do You Need to Replace Your Car Seat, or Is it Still Safe to Use?
On 3 Across Installation and Compatibility
- 3 Across Installations: A Guide to Which Car Seats Will Fit Every Vehicle
- The 6 Narrowest Car Seats that Will Fit 3 Across in Any Vehicle
- Four of the Narrowest Infant Seats for 3 Across Car Seat Installations
Car Seat Safety in Exceptional Vehicles (Buses, Trains, Planes, and Rentals, Taxis, and Cabs)
- Car Seat Safety in Trains: How to Keep Children Safe on Trains
- School Buses Safer than Driving / Walking Your Child to School
- Why you Never Let Your Children Cross the Street to Board a School Bus
- How to Make Your School District Choose a Safer Bus Stop
- Why You Shouldn’t Rent Car Seats For Traveling Or Vacations
- Are Car Seats Required in Cabs (Taxis, Uber, Lyft) to Travel with Kids?
If you find my information on best practices in car and car seat safety helpful, you can buy my books here or do your shopping through this Amazon link. Canadians can shop here for Canadian purchases. It costs nothing extra to do so, but when you shop through my links, a small portion of your purchase, regardless of what you buy, will go toward the maintenance of The Car Crash Detective.