Should I continue using a car seat for my 14 year old son?
Sunday, May 16th, 2010 at
12:53 am
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For my state (New York) the requirement for using a car seat for kids is eight years old and eighty pounds. It may vary state to state, so check on line with your state DMV or DOT (Dept of transportation and safety). The most important thing to look at is where the seat belts are holding your child. They should be restraining him across his hips and shoulder, the strongest parts of his body. Also, if he can sit up straight in your car without slouching and have his knees bend at the edge of the seat, with his feet flat on the floor, it’s time to lose the booster seat.
YES! definately.
Depends on the laws in your state, but I think that he is big enough to go without the booster. Plus, he has stronger back and neck muscles than a young child…
I think 14 is way too old for a booster seat. I also think 8 and 11 are too old. But this is just my opinion.
Hi! the law requires a child to be in a booster seat until he passes the height of 4’9". Hope this helps.
Yup. He’s over the age of 10 and over 80lb. He’ll be fine.
at 85 pounds, i think you should discontinue using a car seat.
I’m sorry, but thats kind of rediculous. A booster seat can’t really help your childs safety, can it? I think your just embarrasing , just because hes not a normal size doesn’t mean he has to have a car seat. I think your being a little paranoid.
I believe your son is old enough and big enough to sit in the car without the car seat.
Uhm… please tell me this isn’t serious? That’s considered child abuse isn’t it?
Is he embarassed by this? Kids like goofy things sometimes- if he – take it out!!!
absolutely!
NO………….. back seat seat belt even the front is ok. he’s 14 85pds thats ok
maybe u should stop
that can get really embarassing bein a 14yr old and going to high school getting out of a car seat
uh ya…it’s about time he becomes a big boy
Ask the local fire department what they think…
I believe that its time to give up the booster seat. He is going to have severe problems making friends and adjusting to other kids.
It has to do with the proper height for a seat belt. Seat belts do not work for small children, thus the need for car seats.
You can stop with booster seats after 80 pounds and it is perfectly safe…
80lbs or more, you don’t need a car seat.
I know I have a booster seat rated up to 100 lbs. Is he comfortable in the car seat without the booster? I would base it on his comfort level more than what random people on the Internet tell you. The main purpose of the booster is to make the seat-belt fit right, btw.
Yes- It must be humiliating for a 14 year old. Let the 11 year old go without one, too.
ummmmmmmmmm yes!
I don’t know what the laws are regarding child seats in your area, but in my area, a child has to be 9, 80 lbs or 4" tall, which ever comes first. I would say it’s probably safe to let him go without the seat… just don’t allow him to ride in the front seat if you have air bags.
yeah he’ll be fine he’s wayyyy too old too be in a booster!!! how embarrising for a teenager…i hope you never let his friends ride in the car too.
I think it is time you take all of your boys out of the booster seat. I undersand they may be small for their age, but I’m sure they are passed the age limit for use of booster seats. Especially the 14 year old. He is either in high school, or soon will be. It is time!!!
Get that poor kid out of the car seat. 14? I was driving at 14. That kid is going to get picked on to no end if you ever have to drive him anywhere. How has he managed to agree to this???
My pediatrician says over 80 pds and 4’6", can ride without a car seat or booster.
i guess it would depend on your state laws, but i would think 14 is a little too old to be in a booster seat…are any of his friends still in a booster seat? does he mind riding in a booster seat? if the seatbelt is uncomfortable, you can purchase a clip that holds the harness further down on his shoulder
I think you should take the risk. If it hasn’t already, it could seriously damage his self esteem, which will lead to a LOT of problems later on. IF you continue, he’ll have a very very very rough childhood. I’m actually surprised he hasn’t started refusing to go into the car.
Take the risk and give your kid some dignity, it’ll help him more than you might think.
I thought they only had to have a booster seat under 4’9". Maybe it’s different from state to state. Check the laws in your state. I would say if he’s over the height that the seat is required, remove it. I don’t know if using one if it’s not needed could be worse in the event of an accident or not.
(edit) By the way, I’m between 4’10" and 4’11" and have never been given a ticket for not being in a booster seat in any state.
YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (AND I AM SHOUTING WHILE USING CAPS RIGHT NOW) THAT WILL SCAR HIM 4 LIFE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! HOW COULD YOU DO THAT TO HIM? THAT IS THE MOST HUMILATING THING THAT YOU COULD DO TO HIM. IF MY MOM MADE ME SIT IN A BOOSTER SEAT, I WOULD TELL HER NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. I WOULD NOT GO ANYWHERE. THAT HAS TO BE ABOUT THE MOST HORRIBLE THING THAT YOU COULD DO FOR HIS SOCIAL LIFE. HE WILL HATE YOU FOR IT WHEN HE HAS NO FRIENDS & HAS NO WIFE LATER IN LIFE. THAT IS THE WORST THING. DON’T MAKE HIM DO IT ANYMORE. I HOPE THAT HE CAN STILL TURN AROUND FROM THIS.
This is a quote from the CDC link below. I would say the 14 year old is past the need for the booster.
Children should use a booster seat until the lap/shoulder belts in the car fit properly — when they are at least 58 inches tall, have a sitting height of 29 inches and weigh 80 pounds (with clothing on).2 To ride comfortably and safely, children must be able to bend their knees over the edge of the seat while sitting with their backs firmly against the seat back. In most cases, this means that children 10 years old and younger should be using a booster seat after they have outgrown the child safety seat.
Are you trying to give the kid a complex?
He’s already short. Quit trying to make him feel like a mutant, for god’s sake.
and bet they all feel so much like babies the 8yr old is big for a car seat much less the 14 yrs old im sure he hates it if any of his friends see that here the law say 5yrs or 60 lbs if they wear the seat belt should be nothing wrong with it for any of them to go with out it mom you got to let them grow up some use the seat belts is good get rid of the boosters
People, DON’T FEED THE TROLLS
NO! Do NOT continue using the car seat for any of your children. How embarrassing!
Yes with his size and weight be good keep him safe in car set.
I’m 13 and your kids are most likely extremely embarrassed I have very small friends and they ride without a booster seat and their parents aren’t worried because even though they don’t meet the weight or height requirement they most likely will meet the age requirement
Even if he’s short, by that height, he should be fine!
If all his friends are 11, he already has a few social issues, and by making him ride in the car seat, you are definitely not helping.
By that age, almost all teens are sitting in the front seat. In another year, he’ll have his permit. Sitting in a booster seat and driving?
That seems a little ridiculous to me.
By the way, the 11 year old is too old also.
Sorry for all the toughness asking this question has brought you, but someone had to tell you.
all 3 of your sons are waayyy too old for a booster seat.even without a booster seat theyll still be safe as long as they wear a seat belt. even if your sons are small..it doesnt mean they shouold still be using a booster seat..in my opion the oldest you should be for a booster seat is 5. your youngest son past that up 3 years ago.
by making your sons sit in booster seats you’re ruining theyre social skills. youre treating them like a baby so theyre going to act like a baby. you need to treat like kids their age and stop hanging on to them.
im 13 and if my mom still made me sit in a booster seat id throw it away. i cant even remember the lat time i sat in one and ive never gotten hurt in a car..like i said as long as they wear a seatbelt theyll be safe
go to http://www.boosterseat.org and read the laws…….
Are these the boys that take baths togeher together? I checked your history and it is confirmed,they are those boys. I don’t think you’re funny by the way.
If he is small and not embarrassed by it, you should continue using it. However, he might be getting a bit too large for it, so if you want to make sure that he is as safe as he can be, make sure you READ THE LABELS on the car seat. If he’s too large for it or too heavy, it could hurt him if you were ever in an accident.
Put him in the seat without the booster. Check where the seatbelt lays when he puts it on. The belt should lay across the middle of his shoulder and across his chest without cutting into his neck.
If the shoulder belt is positioned properly for him without the booster, you can let him ride without it.
If the shoulder belt is NOT positioned properly, AND using the booster DOES position the belt properly, then use the booster.
That’s it. Just check the belt position. You can do this is two minutes with each of your boys.
I also suggest you follow the links provided by previous posters and your state police/highway patrol will probably have good info on their websites as well.
Is this Gary Coleman were talking about?
What you talkin about Willis?
I am sorry but that is just ridiculous! The car seat should have been tossed at age 7! The car seat was made more to keep the kid still in his seat as a baby than for safety reasons. You are trying to keep him your little baby and that is very bad.
p.s. You don’t know that he isn’t embarassed by it, he may just not want to hurt your feelings.
the conditions for booster seats are… 4’8”, 80 lbs, or 8 years old. I think that since he’s 14, 4’10 or 11” and around 85 lbs… he’ll be fine without one.
HA HA…your son is a freaking nerd sandwich!!!..That’s exactly the type of stuff all the kid’s are gonna say, when they see "mommas boy" come to school in a goddamn booster seat at 14 flippin’ years old..he’s 2 years away from getting his driver’s license for Christ’s sake and you’ve got him riding shotgun in a dorky-a** booster seat…Ha Ha..have you ever heard of midgets? I’m sorry I’ll try being more P.C…I mean little people? Do you see those sawed off little f*ckers cruising around in booster seat’s?…most of them are way shorter than you’re kid is…and even they wouldn’t be caught dead sitting in a baby seat…i mean that’s just borderline abusive treating a 14 yr old like he’s an infant..WTF!! You are priceless lady…with every post I read of yours- the more I feel for that poor little bastard…you are absolutely setting him up for social failure in school by babying him so much…he is going to get eaten alive by all the normal kid’s – if he isn’t already…get off the whole prepubescent trip too, stop coddling him and toughen him up..do you want him to grow up to be a man or a total p*ssy…it sound’s like you are hoping for the latter…let me guess- divorced? hate your husband? living through your kid’s? trying to make sure that they’re not like their daddy who broke your heart? … lol…Am I warm? Do you still keep a night-light on for him in the bathroom so when he goes pee-pee by himself the boggie man can’t get him? When he ride’s his bike do you make sure he wears his helmet and knee pad’s- so he look’s like the poster boy for birth control? When little johnny says a cuss word do you wash his mouth out with soap? Ha Ha- I guarentee you do that…Poor little nerd sandwich- he’s gonna be one hurting unit in the years to come thanks to you!
are you serious? omg
Are you crazy? And your 14 yr old gets in the booster seat? and your 11 yr old too? Are you all crazy? And their dad thinks this is ok?