SAFETY SQUAD: Empowing Your Family

Clek Olli Review

The Clek Olli is a backless, belt-positioning booster, rated for children 40-100 pounds and 40-57” tall. The Olli is one of two booster seats with rigid lower LATCH attachments. It is also one of a handful that allows LATCH to be used at all as a booster.

As with all boosters, the Olli must always be used with both a lap AND shoulder belt. Children 12 and under should always be seated in the rear seat, even if there is no active airbag in the vehicle. Since the Olli is backless...

Using LATCH Boosters with Offset LATCH

A new breed of booster has emerged in the last year. Some belt positioning boosters may now come equipped with flexible or rigid LATCH lower anchor attachments. This may seem confusing. However, the lower anchors are designed to keep the booster seat secured when your child is NOT riding in it. It should be made clear that these booster seats still require the use of a lap/shoulder belt to properly restrain the child. Two examples include the Clek Olli and the Jane Indy.

The issue we’ve found is that in some vehicles, manufacturers have installed offset lower LATCH anchors. This means that the lower LATCH anchors are not centered in a seating position...

30 lb booster seats: It's time for a change (PART 2)

We just returned from Lifesavers 2008 in Portland, Oregon. Among other things, this conference focuses on car seat safety. Unlike the ABC Conference in Las Vegas which is geared to retailers, this conference focuses on car seat technicians and the challenges they face.

One topic we addressed was the 30 lb booster seat issue. Booster use is rising as states are requiring parents to use boosters or higher-weight harnesses to increased ages, weights and heights. This provides manufacturers a more robust market for selling...

30 lb booster seats: It's time for a change

The booster issue is fraught with mixed & conflicting messages. Not only do different parties have different messages, but often one party will contradict itself (see our previous booster post). One inconsistency makes us cringe: Lower-weight booster seats. While most agencies and organizations are pushing for parents to keep their children in higher-weight 5-point harnesses, the manufacturers of booster seats are promoting booster seat use starting at thirty pounds.  This is not new, but it needed to be said. Why are parents still being given this message?

4 Years & 40 Pounds: Fact or Fiction?

A couple of months ago, I had a conversation with an official about the "4 year & 40lbs" rule. This is the  phrase used to indicate when children can move to boosters from a 5-point harness. We had heard it many times, in many ways, by many people. The reason I asked was that we had never seen it written anywhere. I'm sure it's written somewhere, maybe in an old edition of some book, but is it a message that should be repeated?

In the current climate, it doesn't make any sense. While techs and reps are encouraging higher weight forward-facing seats, they are also telling parents not to move into boosters until "at least 4 years & 40lbs". Isn't that the age and weight we find so many poorly fitted children?

The recent ABC Story on the benefit of higher-capacity forward-facing seats, which was well done, mentioned this common, but misleading phrase too. Where did they get that information?

Why not say, "5 & 50" or "6 & 60" before moving to booster seat? "5 & 55" has a nice ring too. Any one of these would make more sense and be more consistent with the current message to stay in a 5-point harness longer.

"Boost Clues" (Booster Seat Questions Answered)

“My child is 8 years old so Illinois law says he doesn’t need a child seat any more, right?”  Yes, that’s right but he may still need a booster seat to be safe.  Generally the law that requires a child seat until age eight is a good one.  Specifically, it may not go far enough to protect your child.

Kids come in all shapes and sizes, and like strollers, bicycles, and clothes, they fit safety belts differently.  While many children may be large enough to fit into an adult safety belt at age eight, many are not.  The only way to know for sure is to try it.  Older kids can use the adult seat belt in the back seat, if it fits properly.  If it doesn’t, they should remain in a booster seat.

In order to correctly fit in a safety belt, a child must:
• be tall enough to sit without slouching
• keep his/her back against the vehicle seat back
• keep his/her knees completely bent over the edge of
   the vehicle seat
• keep his/her feet flat on the floor of the vehicle
• be able to stay comfortably seated this way
• keep the lap belt low and snug across his/her upper
   thighs/lower hips

Never put the shoulder belt under your child’s arm or behind your child’s back. This can cause severe injuries in a crash. If the safety belt does not fit properly, the child should remain in a belt-positioning booster seat.

For your child’s safety, don’t be in a hurry to take them out of their booster seats.  Adult safety belts are designed for adults, not children.