This week is child passenger safety week. It is a great time to reevaluate your kid's car seats to make sure they are still the best choice for your child and are still installed properly. Here are a few quick tips about which car seat is right for your child:

• Kids under age 2 should be rear facing. There are 5 times fewer injuries when they are involved in a crash. We would prefer that kids stay rear facing up to the rear facing weight limit of the seat.
• Once kids move out of a rear facing seat they'll go into a forward facing seat with a harness.
• The earliest you would ever want to move a child to a booster seat is at 4 years old and 40 pounds. Again, we would prefer that kids stay in a harness until they reach the forward facing weight limit of the seat. 
• Vermont law says that kids should remain in a booster seat until age 8. Even then, they should be roughly 4'9" tall before moving to a seat belt. Some cars with deep back seats may require your child to be even taller than 4'9". 
• All kids should sit in the back seat until at least age 13. The front passenger seat is the most deadly seat in the vehicle.

How do you make sure your car seat is fit properly in your car:

• Both seat belt OR LATCH(car seat anchor points located in the corner of your seat) are great ways to secure your car seat. Beware that most vehicles only have LATCH seating positions on the left and right sides in the rear of the vehicle. Check your owners manual. LATCH also has child weight limits between 40 and 65 pounds depending on your vehicle.
• Your car seat should move no more than 1" side to side when moved where the seat belt / LATCH goes through the seat.
• Use your tether (a strap that connects the back of the car seat to the vehicle seat) for forward facing installations. This can reduce the chances of your child's head hitting the seat in front of them in a significant crash.

If you are having a tough time getting your seat installed or just want to be sure you got it right set up an appointment with a car seat technician to check your seat. Richmond Rescue offers car seat checks on the first and third Tuesday of each month from 9am to noon. We also offer appointments at other times. Contact carseats@richmondrescue.org to make your appointment.

There are many other fitting stations around the state. Find one nearby and get your seat checked today.