Kids' Car Seats & Seat Belts

"It is the driver's responsibility to ensure that all child-passengers are properly restrained."

Every state and Washington, D.C. have child restraint laws that require children of certain ages and sizes to ride in federally approved child restraints. "As of March 2023, a total of 18 states—California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Virginia and Washington—and the District of Columbia have strengthened their child safety laws to require rear-facing car seats until age 2."

"State statutes that mandate use of child safety seats or restraint systems have been enacted in all 50 states. However, many of these statutes also provide that failure to use such safety devices may not be considered as contributory or comparative negligence; some provide that failure to use child safety belts may not be considered in mitigation of damages; and, some provide that evidence of failure to use these devices is not admissible in any civil action."
This article is available on Westlaw Patron Remote for Pro Se/Non-Attorneys or at select public libraries in NH. Follow the link at the top of this page to learn more.