Child Passenger Safety

The Washington County Health Department does NOT have carseats. There are two Car Seat Technicians on staff who will assist in car seat installations.

Ask for Shiela or Nissa

Your child is counting on you to provide the best protection in a vehicle! Make sure your child always rides safely in your car, and prepare older children to “think safety” if they are ever in a car where no car seat or booster seat is available. Make sure children know how to protect themselves by sitting in a back seat and using a safety belt. Approximately 45 percent of children who died in motor vehicle crashes in 2006 were completely unrestrained.
Don't let your child become a statistic.
Remember to wear your seat belt on every ride too. Your child will do as you do!

Rear Facing

Forward Facing

Booster

Seat Belt

Missouri car seat safety laws require children under age four and under 40 pounds to ride in a federally approved child car seat that is appropriate for the child's age and size. Children ages 4 through 7 who weigh more than 40 pounds but less than 80 pounds or are not at least 4'9" tall must ride in an appropriate child car seat or booster seat. Children ages 8 to 18 must wear a seat belt. Missouri law also prohibits children under age 18 from riding in an unenclosed truck bed.

If you aren't sure how to install a car seat, don't fake it! Some estimates say that up to 80% of car seats are not installed properly, and that can cause disaster. If you don't feel very confident that you can install your choice of car seat exactly as it should be, find someone who can do the job for you.

Click on the picture to the right to find a Car Seat Inspection Site near you.

Infants should stay in rear-facing seats until they weigh at least 20 pounds, can pull themselves up to stand, or reach one year of age. Some experts say you can keep the baby in the rear-facing seat even longer: it mainly depends on how the seat continues to fit the child. Convertible car seats are the answer to the problem of the growing child: convertibles can be used as rear-facing seats until the child is older, and then convert to front-facing seats.

Once children reach the proper weight and skill set (they can pull themselves up and weigh more than 20 pounds), they can be moved to a front-facing car seat. Toddlers weighing between 20 and 40 pounds should be placed in forward-facing seats. It's important to pay attention to what your child weighs: car seats are only rated for a particular number of pounds, and if your child is over weight for that car seat, it cannot protect him/her as it should.

A child under the age of 8, who weighs between 40 and 80 pounds and who is under 4 feet 9 inches tall must have a booster seat when riding in the car.

Once the child reaches 8 years of age, weighs more than 80 pounds or stands more than 4 foot 9, a regular seatbelt can be used.

Washington County Health Department
520 Purcell Drive
Potosi * MO * 63664

Phone: (573) 438-2164 * Fax: (573) 438-4759