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Can an Infant Car Seat Be Placed in Front Seat? As children grow out of their car seats as infants, they can move to convertible or all-in one car seats. These car seats can be used rear-facing or forward-facing, but they must to meet certain weight and age requirements. Car seats should never be placed in front of a seat equipped with airbags, as the force of the deployed air bag can be lethal for children and babies. 1. The 1.5 Inch Rule The answer to this question is no. The reason is very simple If a collision occurs, the child could have their head hit by an airbag if they are in the front seat. The airbag can cause injury or even kill a baby. This is the reason why infant car seats are made to be rear-facing only. In a crash the back of the seat will rest against the back of your vehicle seat. This is the best protection for your infant. In addition, a rear-facing car seat protects the head and neck of your child better than a forward-facing seat which offers only a small amount of neck and head protection. The headrest prevents the child from sliding off the shoulder straps in a crash, and the harness keeps the chest clip in place above the shoulders of your child. It's important to note that there are ZERO known instances of children in car seats that face forwards breaking their legs after hitting the rear of the front seat. This happens when a child's feet fly upwards and get stuck against the rear of the seat, which puts tremendous pressure on the leg bones. There is no reason to put your child at risk of this. There are a variety of programs across the country for qualifying parents to get discounted or free infant car seats. This is a great opportunity to ensure your child is in a secure car seat before they outgrow it and use it in a safe manner for a long time. The majority of the new infant car seats have an adjustable base that they can click into and out of, which makes them much more user-friendly than older models. This feature is especially beneficial for traveling with young children as it allows you to keep the car seat in place and ready to go, even if you change vehicles. Find the center of the vehicle seat and measure it with a tape. Many items, such as the blade of a house key, or the length of wireless earbuds are around 1.5 inches long and can be used to check for this space. After that, you should check the car seat's instructions and vehicle owner's manual to see whether you can alter the angle of the car seat to eliminate the space. 2. Harness Position In the infant car seats, bouncers, swings strollers, and other toys for children, newborns and preemies may get into a dangerous situation with their chests and chins touching. In a crash, they may be injured by the chest clip or crushed by the straps of the harness that are loose or not placed over their shoulders. To prevent this from happening, make sure that the straps on your shoulder start a bit lower and move up over the child's shoulders and ensure that you tighten them. The straps should be tight enough to pinch excess fabric to each other. This is called the Pinch Test. Winter coats and other bulky outer layers can interfere with the Pinch Test, so remove them prior to putting your child in their seat. The chest clip is designed to protect against a fall, but it can cause compression to the child's neck if it is too low or are too loose. It's also crucial that the chest strap is not placed in the neck opening of the collar – the buckle should be at the armpit level. In the event of a crash rear-facing infants can slide across the seat and the harness straps must be able to support the child's neck and head. It is crucial to place the straps on the shoulders. If the straps are too low they may slide over the baby's ears or slide through their neck opening, and if they are too loose, they could move toward the child's nose. Ensure the shoulder straps are in the slots at or above the shoulders of your child and they fit comfortably. Newborns may need a separate infant insert (often included with the car seat) to raise them to ensure their shoulders are in the slot. Some infant car seats include angle indicators or adjustors to aid you in this. best car seat can also refer to the instructions included with the seat. 3. Rear-Facing Only Some parents might be enticed by the fact that their child's legs are becoming shorter in the rear-facing seat, however there is no reason to do this. Rear-facing is safer than forward-facing as the infant's neck and spine are supported in the event of an accident. Forward-facing children are more susceptible to serious injuries due to the fact that their bodies are thrown against the vehicle. Additionally, a lot of infant car seats come with an integrated angle indicator so you can ensure that the seat is properly installed. Also, you should ensure that your child's head is flat on the seat, and that the straps are over their shoulders, not under their arms. You should be able to pinch a little bit of material at their shoulder to determine whether the harness is secure enough. Examine the crotch strap to make sure it's at the same level as the armpits, and not at the waist. It is also a good idea to review your infant car seat manual to ensure you understand the correct way to use it for your child. The majority of manufacturers recommend that children sit rear-facing in their car seats until they are at least one year old, or until they reach the weight and height limit of their particular car seat. Certain states have laws that require infants to be rear-facing until they reach the age of two years old. Install the infant car seat on the middle seat of a vehicle that only has one back seat. This will allow you to see your child comfortably through the rearview mirror, without having to bend over. It's also helpful to install the car seat on the driver's side so you don't have to walk all the way around your car each time you want to get your child in or out of their car seat. If you own a car that has two back seats you can place the infant car seat on either side as long as it's not in front of the passenger-side air bag. However, if you have to choose between installing the infant car seat on the left or right side of the vehicle, put it on the driver's side. 4. Booster Seats Children who have outgrown their infant car seat due to their weight and height will require a booster until the vehicle's seat belt is properly fitted. This is only possible when the child is at a minimum 4'9” tall and has reached the top of the headrest. Booster seats can help position the lap belt and shoulder properly. Booster seats also help reduce how far the child's neck moves during a collision, reducing the chance of injury. Motor vehicle accidents are the number one killer of kids ages 4-8, and head motion is the biggest culprit. If a booster is used incorrectly the lap portion of the belt can travel up to the abdomen of a child and cause major injuries in a crash. This can be avoided with a belt guide on the booster, which stops the lap belt from sliding up onto a child's stomach, or getting over armrests. A lot of boosters have handles that are small and armrests or guide slots to position the lapbelt low and flat on the child's upper legs. This ensures that the lap belt starts and remains on a child's strong hip bones, instead of moving up into their soft stomach area in the event of a crash. Some booster seats are equipped with the mechanism to lock the seat belt to ensure that the belt is locked in place while children are sitting in it. This will help prevent the lap belt from moving up over a child's abdomen. This will keep the seat belt from being pulled upwards over a child's face. This could cause hypoxia and airway obstruction, and neck strain.