(WXYZ) — Parents, mark your calendars. April 2 is when Michigan’s new car seat laws go into effect. If you break the law, you could get a ticket, but more importantly, these laws could save lives.
“It just so happened that day, at 65 mph, we had a head-on collision, which ultimately totaled our car,” said Emily Catania.
Catania is the mother of two adorable little boys. Before her 8-week-old Lincoln came into the picture, there was a terrifying car crash that could have upended her world.
Her other son, 3-year-old Lawrence, was only 1 year old when she and her husband got into a head-on collision.
“I may have walked away with, you know, a broken rib and lots of bruises, but my kid was completely fine and up and laughing, and wanting to know why mommy was crying. It was definitely a huge relief for me,” said Catania.
She credits her friend, Andrea Peardon, with saving her son’s life. Peardon is a certified child passenger safety technician and had checked Emily’s car seat just before the crash.
“I knew in that moment that I’ve done everything I’m supposed to, because I had that car seat installed properly,” said Catania.
Andrea has been a baby and family photographer for the last 15 years and has her own children.
“I wanted to get certified so that I would be able to better serve my clients and help all the kids around me ride safe,” said Peardon.
I turned to Andrea for help to better understand Michigan’s new child passenger safety laws.
One big change is that children under the age of two must be in a rear-facing seat.
“Now it is a law in Michigan that they will be rear-facing two and younger. We would like them to be rear-facing for as long as possible. That maxes out the height or weight of their car seat,” said Peardon.
See more on how to safely install a car seat in the video below
Once they turn 5, they can move to a booster seat using a lap and shoulder belt until they are 8, or until they reach 4-foot-9.
All children 13 and under must ride in the backseat of the car, if there is an open backseat.
There are some exceptions to these rules, including reaching the maximum weight or height allowed by the car seat’s manufacturer.
“I think the more guidelines we have as parents, the better off we are, because most of us as parents are walking around like chickens with our heads cut off, just trying to figure out what is best for our kids,” said Catania.
HELPFUL LINKS
- More information on the new car laws from Michigan.Gov is at this link.
- You can reach out to a car seat technician near you at this link.
- There's a Car Seat check event happening in Troy next month, if you'd like to double-check to make sure your child is riding safely.
