IIHS Recommends Booster Seats Until Age 12
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety suggests some children may need to be placed in a car booster seat until age 12.
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety released annual ratings of child booster seat models on Nov. 7 and reported 19 of 31 new models it evaluated earned the top rating of BEST BET and one was rated a GOOD BET. In its report about them, IIHS stated some children as old as 12 should be required to sit in a car booster seat.
"When children outgrow child restraints, they should use boosters until adult belts fit properly. For some children, that's not until about age 12," according to the IIHS news release.
IIHS stated that children between the ages of four and eight are 45 percent less likely to be injured in a car accident when in a booster seat. By upping the age to 12, perhaps children will face fewer injuries in car accidents. According to CBS, car crashes are the number one cause of death in children ages one to 13.