Several states have different laws requiring children to sit
in the back seat of a car until a certain age, but usually it is recommended
that you should not let your child ride in the front seat until he or she is at
least 13 years old, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Although not every state has a law preventing kids from
sitting in the front seat, it is simply always safest to have them sit in the
back. Kids who are shorter than 4 feet, 9 inches or under 13 years of age should
be riding in the backseat. Buckling a child into the backseat instead of the
front reduces their risk of being killed in a crash by one-third. In a head-on
collision, a child in the front seat can be thrown into your car’s dashboard or
through the windshield. Even if the child is properly buckled in, they are at
much greater risk of being hurt by objects intruding into the car in the front
than in the back. Not only that, but air bags, which are located in the front,
can severely injure or kill a child due to how much force they inflate with,
which can be too much for a small child. There have been more than a hundred
cases in recent years of children who have died due to airbags that went off in
minor collisions that they could have survived if they were sitting in the
back.
If for any reason, you must put a child in the front seat,
such as if the vehicle has no back seat, you should turn off your car’s airbag
if it has an on-off switch. If your car doesn’t have an on-off switch, you can
get one installed. If you can’t disable your passenger air bag, move the front
passenger seat as far back from the dashboard as possible. If the back seat of
the vehicle has lap belts only and no shoulder restraints and your child rides
in a booster seat, then it is safer to place the child on the booster in the
front seat where there are shoulder restraints, rather than the back. If you’re
riding with more than one child, the biggest or tallest child should have the
front seat.
Always make sure that a child riding in the front seat is
wearing their seat belt properly. The lap belt should fit low across the
pelvis, and the shoulder belt should not cut across the child’s neck. Never put
the shoulder belt behind their back. And remember, wear your seat belt as well!
Be a role model and set a good example for your children so they can get used
to the habit of how imperative it is to put on their seat belt.
If
you or someone you know has been involved in a car crash or truck accident in
Detroit, Grand Rapids, Warren, Sterling Heights, Lansing, Flint, Ann Arbor,
Livonia, Dearborn, Canton, Westland, Troy, Farmington Hills, Southfield,
Waterford or any other city in Michigan, make sure to contact Motor City
Accident Attorneys by calling 1-800-411-PAIN. Motor City Accident Attorneys
know how stressful a car accident can be and want to help you get back on your
feet. They will fight tirelessly for your rights and help you get the
compensation you deserve, according to your specific case. Make sure to follow
Motor City Accident Attorneys on Twitter (@MCAccidentAtty) and Facebook. Join
the conversation by using #MCAA.
