Front Seat Passengers

Updated on October 15, 2009
S.B. asks from Holland, MI
4 answers

Can anyone tell me what the law/safety reccomendations are for front seat riding. ie 12 yrs and 80 lbs etc?

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C.P.

answers from Detroit on

I am in the e.r. through my work fairly often and have seen 12 year olds come in with broken noses and pretty serious facial trauma from the airbags. I'm not sure what the law is but I personally will make my children wait until they are 13 before they can ride in the front.

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L.V.

answers from Kalamazoo on

I just looked it up the other day. It is 12 years AND over 4'9".

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M.H.

answers from Detroit on

Hi S.
This is what I found on the MI State police website..."Effective July 1, 2008, Michigan state law requires that children under age 8 must be properly restrained in a car seat or booster seat. Children who are under age 8 but taller than 4'9" may use the vehicle seat belt."
This is also on the mi state police website, the law was effective from June 2009..."Under the newly revised law, children younger than four must ride in a car seat in the rear seat of the vehicle if the vehicle has a back seat. If all available rear seats are occupied by children under four, then a child under four may ride in the front seat if properly restrained in a car seat. If the child is in a rear-facing car seat, they may be placed in the front seat only if the front passenger air bag is turned off and all rear seats are occupied by children under four."
Just so you know I cut and pasted these segments from the website so they are accurate. So basically, a child over the age of four may legally ride in the front seat of a vehicle if properly restrained. However, it is recommended by all car safety advocates that the back seat is the safest place for any child under the age of 12 years. I have had to put my six year old in the front before and have made sure to put the seat as far back as possible because of the airbag whcih I cannot turn off (which they need to be at least 10 inches from because of the "blast impact" if an accident did occur) and put him on his booster with his seatbelt fastened, just as I do when he's in the back.
Hope this was helpful to you. :0)

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J.M.

answers from Detroit on

I believe that it is 12 y.o. but unsure if there is a weight involved.

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