A new child car seat safety law will take effect on Wednesday. In 2023 the state of Michigan passed an updated law requiring children under two years old to sit in rear-facing child car seats while traveling. Additionally, the law requires parents to have a child car seat for children up to 8 years old or taller than 4 feet 9 inches.
The law was passed to lower the chances of severe injuries to children involved in car accidents. Correctly used child car seat devices can reduce fatalities during an accident by up to 71 percent according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Traffic accidents are the leading cause of death for young children in the United States of America.
The updated law will require a forward-facing seat for children between 2 and 5 years old, and a booster seat for children under 8. All children under the age of 13 must remain in the rear seat of a vehicle. Recently the Michigan state police shared some information ahead of the child car seat safety law implementation on April 2nd.
Find more information here.
