Your child’s safety is your top priority. Fortunately, as infant car seat designs have improved over time, they have enhanced infant safety in Lake Stevens car accidents. Still, the most crucial aspects of child vehicle safety are correctly installing children’s car seats, using an age-appropriate car seat for each child, and carefully following the state’s car seat laws. In Washington, car seat laws optimize safety for each age level as children grow and mature.
Washington’s Car Seat Laws for Child Safety
Under RCW 46.61.687, Washington’s law describes the specific safety restraint requirements for children under age 16 while riding in moving vehicles. All child car seats must be Department of Transportation-compliant and properly installed before use.
The state’s car seat laws are as follows:
- Children under age two must be properly restrained in a rear-facing car seat installed in the back seat of the car until they exceed the height and weight limit listed by the manufacturer, and may continue to remain in the enhanced safety provided by a rear-facing car seat after age two if they are still within the size limit of the seat.
- Once a child over age two has exceeded the weight and height limit of a rear-facing car seat, they must be restrained in a forward-facing car seat installed in the back seat of the vehicle.
- Children under the age of four must remain in a forward-facing car seat until they exceed the seat’s height and weight limits, and may continue to be seated in a forward-facing car seat beyond age four if they’re still within the seat’s size limit.
- Children between the ages of four and eight may transfer to a booster seat that lifts them to the appropriate height necessary to use the vehicle’s seat belt correctly positioned across the lap rather than the stomach and with the shoulder strap across the shoulder and torso.
- Children over age 8 may remain in a booster seat until age 12 or until they are large enough that their feet touch the floor when sitting back against the seat cushion, with the seat belt fastened correctly across the lap and shoulder.
The law also states that children under age 13 must ride in the back seat of the vehicle whenever it is possible to do so.
Are There Exceptions to Car Seat Laws In Washington State?
All adults transporting children in private vehicles must follow the state’s car seat laws. Washington’s car seat law states the following:
“A person violating … may be issued a notice of traffic infraction under Washington chapter 46.63 RCW. If the person to whom the notice was issued presents proof of acquisition of an approved child restraint system or a child booster seat, as appropriate, within seven days to the jurisdiction issuing the notice and the person has not previously had a violation of this section dismissed, the jurisdiction shall dismiss the notice of traffic infraction.”
Fines for car seat law violations are about $136.00. The law also states that failing to properly restrain a child in a moving vehicle does not constitute negligence in any civil action.
Exceptions to Washington State’s car seat and seat belt requirements exist for the following:
- School buses
- For-hire cars, such as taxis and rideshare vehicles
- Shuttle services
- Tour buses and vans designed to hold 16 or fewer passengers
How Can a Washington State Car Accident Attorney Help Me?
If your child suffered an injury in a Washington car accident, an experienced Lake Stevens personal injury lawyer can protect your family’s rights and demand financial accountability from the responsible party under Washington’s fault-based injury laws. Call or contact Wells Trumbull online to learn more about the state’s car seat laws and your legal options after a crash.