Texas Updates Booster Seat Law

Beginning Sept. 1, 2009, kids in Texas who are under 8 years old who are not yet 4'9" tall will be required by law to ride in a booster seat or other approved car seat. The previous Texas car seat law only covered kids through age four and less than 36" tall, who still should be buckled into car seats per state law. Texas is one of many states to create a booster seat law recently, thanks to updated information that shows kids ages 5-8 are not properly protected by adult seatbelts alone and are being injured in greater numbers in vehicle crashes due to inadequate protection.

Texas does have a proper use clause, meaning that all car seats and booster seats must be properly used, according to manufacturers instructions, so make a visit to a car seat inspection station if you have questions about fitting your child properly in a car seat or booster.