California Law for Car Seats

Buckling up your child properly in a car seat is not only a matter of the law in California, but it's a way to keep your child safe. There is a basic law for safety seats and booster seats in California, and there are some exceptions when it comes to front seat riding and lap-only versus shoulder belts. These exceptions are based on age and weight. Meeting the legal requirements isn't a guarantee of the safety of your child in a vehicle, but only the minimum that needs to be followed in order to avoid a citation, and you may want to take further steps to keep your child safe.

  1. The Basic Law

    • The California law requires that children ride in the back seat buckled properly in a safety seat or a booster seat until the age of 6 years old or until they reach 60 lbs., whichever comes first.

    Lap-Only Belt vs. Shoulder Belt

    • Children under 6 years of age who weigh more than 40 lbs. can wear a lap-only belt in the back seat (with their booster or safety seat) if there are no shoulder belts in the back seat.

    Front Seat Riding

    • Children under 6 years of age who weigh less than 60 lbs. are permitted to ride in the front seat in the following cases: if there is no forward-facing rear seat, such as in trucks or two-seaters, if all the rear seats have other children under the age of 12 sitting in them, or for medical reasons.

      Riding in the front seat is not permitted, however, if there is an active airbag for the passenger seat.

      An infant in a rear-facing safety seat or under 1 year or less than 20 lbs. may not ride in the front seat.

    Age/Weight Exceptions

    • There are some exceptions to the basic California law. The following aren't required by law to use a safety seat or booster seat or to ride in the backseat of any vehicle (that is, vehicles with or without shoulder belts in the backseat): children age 2 and weighing at least 61 lbs., children age 3 and weighing at least 65 lbs., children age 5 and weighing at least 55 lbs., and children age 6 and weighing at least 50 lbs.

      However, children age 5 and weighing at least 55 lbs. and children age 2 and weighing at least 42 lbs. are required to sit in the backseat if there are shoulder belts.

    Shoulder Belt Positioning Devices

    • Shoulder belt positioning devices, used by parents to keep shoulder belts in place on children--such as sleeves made of fabric or plastic or metal clips--cannot be sold legally in the state of California and aren't regulated for safety by federal law.

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