What Are the Car Seat Rules in Alberta?
The main car seat rule in Alberta is that drivers must ensure children under 16 years old are properly secured and restrained. Children are constantly growing, so parents must also adjust and replace their car seats to ensure they’re always protected.
What happens if you don’t obey car seat rules in Alberta? You may face fines (typically around $162) and possible demerit points.
Are you planning to travel or move to Ontario? Read through the booster seat laws in Ontario to ensure you’re not breaking any rules.
How Child Safety Seats Protect Children
Children’s car safety seats protect children in many ways. Here’s how a child safety seat protects its occupant:
- Prevent the child from being ejected in an accident.
- Concentrate crash forces on the strongest parts of a child’s body. Simultaneously, it spreads crash forces on multiple parts of the body to ensure no one body part takes the brunt of the crash.
- Keep the child’s body from hitting hard surfaces in your car’s interior.
- Adjust the child’s position to buckle them down with the car’s seat belt properly.
Children’s Seat Stages in Alberta
Booster seat regulations in Alberta differ depending on the child’s age and size. This is because children of different sizes require different types of seats and protection to ensure maximum safety.
Here are the three stages of children’s car seats according to Alberta’s booster seat laws:
When Can A Child Wear Seat Belts Without Booster Seats?
A child can wear seat belts without booster seats when the seat belt can fit properly. In most cases, the child has to be over 145 cm tall.
How do you know when a child fits in a seat belt well? Here are the main indicators:
- The child’s knees bend properly at the seat’s edge when they sit at the back of the seat.
- The shoulder belt can cross the child’s chest, sitting between the neck and shoulder.
- The lap belt can fit comfortably across the child’s hips and not their stomach.
Once a child fits comfortably in a seat belt, they should sit at the back of the vehicle until they’re 13 years of age.
How to Choose a Child Safety Seat
You don’t want to compromise your child’s safety by choosing a faulty or defective safety seat. Here are our top tips for buying the best car safety seats:
- Compare your child’s height and weight against the seat’s maximum height and weight allowance. Ensure your child’s body dimensions still fall below the seat’s maximum allowance.
- Try installing the seat in your vehicle and have your child sit in it to ensure a comfortable fit and ease of use. Ask the store staff about trial periods, returns, or exchanges if you want to take the seat for a test drive. If you’re buying a seat for a baby on the way, use a doll or teddy bear to simulate your child.
- Check the seat model’s history and ensure it’s never been recalled.
- Never buy used child safety seats without knowing their history. Don’t even think about buying a child safety seat that’s been involved in a severe crash.
- Don’t decide based on prices. Expensive seats aren’t automatically the safest ones available.
- Avoid buying seats that are too old, exhibit visible damage, and have missing parts.
- There’s no one “best” child seat for every kid. Children come in different shapes and sizes, so choose the seat that’s most appropriate for your child’s body and age.
When Can a Child Sit in the Front Seat in Alberta?
A child can sit up front in Alberta if they can fit in a seat belt safely on their own. Alberta car seat laws don’t say when the front seat can be occupied by children. Alberta law does not specify a minimum age, height, or weight for sitting in the front seat, but safety experts strongly recommend children under 13 sit in the back due to airbag risks.
Once a child is tall enough for a proper seatbelt fit (typically around 145 cm), they may no longer need a booster seat, but it’s still safest for them to sit in the back seat.
Most provinces allow children to sit in the front seat, but some rules may differ. Learn more in our article covering whether children can sit in the front seat in Ontario.
Key Advice from MyChoice
- Follow manufacturer height and weight limits, not just age rules, as proper fit is the most important factor in protecting your child.
- Keep children in each seat stage as long as possible, especially rear-facing, which offers the highest level of protection.
- Avoid buying used car seats unless you know their full history, since prior damage or recalls can compromise safety.
- Ensure proper installation of the car seat, as incorrect installation is one of the most common safety issues.