Child Seats

Facts on Child Safety Seat Laws & Missouri

• The Missouri child safety seat law covers children under 4 years of age. Twenty-nine (29) states have child safety laws that cover children 4 years of age and over.
• Nine (9) states require child safety seats for children between the ages of 6 and 8 years. Illinois requires children 7 and younger to be in a child restraint seat while Wyoming requires those ages 8 and younger (or less than 80 pounds) to use a safety seat.
• In Missouri, the maximum fine is $25 for non-compliance of child safety seat requirements for the first offense. Thirty-one states have higher fines for non-compliance including Arkansas ($100) and Texas ($200).
• 43% more children between the ages of 4 and 8 died in auto crashes in Missouri in the past decade than children under 4 years of age.
• Since the current Missouri child safety seat law went into effect (1984), children not covered by the law have experienced 46% more fatalities than those covered by the law.
• Over 400 children between the ages of 4 to 8 in Missouri have died in traffic accidents since the current child safety seat law went into effect in 1984.
• Nationally, our study shows that each additional year of age covered by child safety seat laws lowers fatalities by 4.8%. If Missouri adopted the Wyoming model and covered children through the age of 8, child fatalities could be reduced by 25%.
• Nationally, child safety seat laws have reduced child fatalities by 18%.

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