Car Seat Tips & Colorado Law

The South Metro Safety Foundation and South Metro Fire Rescue are pleased to offer courtesy inspections of child safety seats and booster seats for families that live or work in our fire district. A car seat inspection will take up to 30 minutes per car seat. If you have two or more car seats please book two appointments OR one car seat to be fitted into two cars please book two appointments using the link below.

Car seat events will be scheduled on June 17th at the Joint Service Facility in Parker.

Car Seat Tips & CO Law

Best Car Seat

The best car seat to purchase is one that fits your car and your child the best.

Does the seat fit your child? If you have a thin, tall child you are going to want a seat that has a higher height limit.
Does it fit your car? If you have three car seats to fit into the back seat, you may need to be looking for a narrower car seat.
Will your child sit in the seat? With an older child, do they think the seat is cool and did they get to help pick it out?
Can every adult operate the seat? All adults must be successful in putting the child in the restraint every time. If a grand[arent struggles to release the buckle, it is not the correct car seat for your family.

Crashes

If your car seat has been involved in a major or moderate crash, whether your child was in the seat or not, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recommends that you replace the child’s car seat. If your car was involved in a minor crash (little exterior or interior damage), the car seat does not need to be replaced if all of the following criteria are met:

The vehicle was able to be driven away
The vehicle door nearest the car seat was undamaged
There were no injuries to any of the vehicle occupants
The airbags did not deploy
There is no visible damage to the car seat

Car Seat Law

Link to a summary of Colorado Child Restraint Laws.
Link to South Metro Fire Rescue Child Restraint Recommendations.

It is the driver’s responsibility to ensure that child passengers are properly buckled up in the appropriate restraint on every trip.

Booster Age

After his or her eight birthday, your child no longer has to use his or her booster seat by law. South Metro Fire Rescue recommends that proper seat belt fit is achieved when the child meets the Five-Step Test.

Safety Seat Recalls

Check to see if your safety seat has been recalled.

Safety Seat Expiration

Remember that car restraints expire after six years unless otherwise stated. Do not buy a used child restraint unless it is from a trusted source that knows the restraint’s history.

Recycle Your Old Car Seat

CDOT and the Colorado State Patrol are now recycling old car seats, click the link for more info: Recycle Program for Car Seats

More Information

The Ultimate Car Seat Guide put out by Safe Kids Worldwide is a great new tool to help parents figure out what car seat to purchase, how to install it, how the child is supposed to fit in the seat, and when they should graduate to the next seat.

Information on the Children’s Hospital for additional info please, click here.

If there are any questions, please schedule a car seat inspection. One of our technicians will gladly check your car seat or booster and how your child fits the seat.