Child Booster Seat Safety Ratings

Booster sets play a critical role in the safety of children. All states have laws that make booster seats mandatory for children while riding in a vehicle and car insurance companies can deny any claim for damages should you violate these laws (not to mention you risk the health of your child).

While these laws vary by state in terms of age and height you owe it as a responsible parent to ensure your child’s safety in any vehicle.

There are literally 100’s of booster seats to choose from and before purchasing any booster seat its important to view booster seat safety ratings.

Many independent agencies test booster seats in real crash-test scenarios and have no vested interest in the sale of these seats. One of the best organizations who annually publish booster seat ratings is the  Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

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How do booster seats work?

Booster seats elevate children so the vehicle’s safety belts can fit better. Safety belts are designed for adults and booster seats simply help modify how the safety belt fits child passengers so they works properly.

Without a booster seat, small children are exposed to much more potentially serious injuries (including death) in a car accident.

How are booster seats tested for safety?

This depends on who is doing the testing but most booster seat safety ratings are based on real life crash test simulations.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, for example, has a dedicated crash testing facility where they study and rate almost every aspect of vehicle safety in car accidents.

According to the 2010 report by the IISH the testing protocol for their booster seats safety ratings in 2010 comprised of:

• Use of a specially outfitted crash test dummy representing the size of an average 6-year-old child
• Tested the standard 3 point safety belt under 4 conditions spanning the different range of seat belt configurations

The results of each test were then translated into scores which cumulatively assigned a rating of Best Bet, Good Bets and Not recommended ratings.

While we certainly don’t agree with the use of the word bet (as who wants to bet the safety of the child) realistically when you buy any safety product you are betting the manufacturer has tested the safety of the product.

With an independent review from such a reputable organization as the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety these ratings can help you make a decision on what booster seat may be right for your child.

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The 2010 booster seat ratings by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety are comprised of both high back seats and backless seats and the results are:

BEST BETS

Booster seats rated with a Best Bet rating provide good shoulder belt and lap fit for most typical children aged between 4 and 8 years old. These results apply to most cars, SUV’s and minivans.

High Back Only Booster Seat Models

• Britax Frontier 85 – model #E9LC2E7
• Cybex Solution X-Fix- model: #50020021 – Results also apply to models #0500760
• Evenflo Maestro- model: #31011049 – the best bet rating for the Evenflo Maestro highback booster seat only applies to models manufactured after April 9, 2010.  Evenflo Maestro booster seats built between Nov. 24, 2009, and April 9, 2010 have been recalled
• Recaro ProBOOSTER – model #362.01AK21
• Recaro ProSPORT –  model #385.01AK21
• Recaro Vivo – model #351.00.MM14
• Recaro Young Sport – model #340.00.MM14
• The First Years Pathway B570 – model #B570-BLB – the best bet rating for The First Years Pathway B570 only applies as a BEST BET with the current instruction manual. Previous versions of the instruction manual did not contain sufficient information and the manufacturer has modified the instruction manual with clear instruction on use. Consumers should always check the First Years website to download or view the updated instruction manual.

Dual Mode Highback

• Chicco Keyfit Strada – model # 00071999430070
• Clek Oobr – model # OBM1U
• Cosco Juvenile Pronto Tested – model # 22491  – Results also applying to models #22255/22275
• Eddie Bauer Auto Booster – model #22888
• Graco TurboBooster Crawford – model #1770587
• Harmony Baby Armor – model #0303001BTH
• Harmony Dreamtime – model #0303002JGY
• Maxi-Cosi Rodi XR – model #22223-CIP
• Safety 1st Boost Air Protect – model #BC027

Dual Mode Backless

• Harmony Dreamtime w/clip – model #0303002JGY

Backless Only Booster Seats

• Evenflo Big Kid Amp w/clip – model #3401913
• Harmony Secure Comfort Deluxe w/clip – model #0304001DRM – this best bet rating only applies to models built on or after May 2010.
• Harmony Youth Booster Seat w/clip – model #0304003DRM

GOOD BETS

Highback Only Booster Seat Models

• Evenflo Symphony 65 – model # 3451925

Dual Mode Highback Booster Seat Models

• Britax Parkway SG – model #E9LA869
• Combi Kobuk Air Thru – model #8970
• Combi Kobuk Air Thru – model #8970
• Graco TurboBooster Safeseat Sachi – model #1751523
• Graco TurboBooster Safeseat Wander – model #1751952
• Maxi-Cosi Rodi – model # 22575

NOT RECOMMENDED

Booster seats listed under the “not recommended” list should be avoided as test results showed these booster seats did not provide a secure fit which is exactly what booster seats are supposed to do.

Highback Only Booster Seat Models

• Eddie Bauer Deluxe – model #22800 – results also apply to models #22862/22865
• Eddie Bauer Deluxe 3-in-1 – model #22790 – results also apply to models #22795
• Evenflo Express – model #3292198 – results also apply to models #329XXX
• Evenflo Generations 65 – model #37611060
• Evenflo Sightseer – model #2692198 – results also apply to models #269XXX
• Safety 1st All-in-One – model #22178
• Safety 1st Alpha Omega Elite – model #22465 – results also apply to models #22456/22195/22187

Dual Mode Backless Booster Seat Models

• Harmony Baby Armor w/clip – model #0303001BTH

There are also many child booster seats that were tested and simply not provided a recommendation by the IIHS.

For more information and to confirm the accuracy of this data before buying a booster seat ALWAYS visit the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety’s website direct.

Many times data from studies is re-published without updating small corrections that may have been added later. You can view the annual booster seat safety ratings study results here.

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1. Who are the best car safety rating agencies?

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