The booster is a special car seat, which differs from the usual car seat in that the booster has neither the usual five-point belts nor the back. It is smaller in size, not so voluminous and heavy. In a simple way, a booster is a seat with a classic belt and small armrests.
Types of car boosters
There are three types of children's automobile booster seats :
- from plastic;
- from foam;
- metal.
Each type has its advantages and disadvantages.
The most impractical and cheapest model is a foam booster. It does not protect the child from injury, as it is very light.
Plastic boosters are much stronger, more powerful and do not break from any careless movement. In addition, they are not much more expensive than their foam analogues and not much more heavier. The plastic booster is almost universal. He is chosen by a rather large proportion of teenage parents.
The booster with a metal frame is heavy, massive and quite difficult to assemble. This chair, however, is the most durable and safe. It really will protect the child from injuries in the event of an accident. The metal frame of such models is usually hidden under several layers of material-interlayer. Usually, the booster is covered with a hypoallergenic soft cloth on top, and it will be comfortable for a small passenger to sit in a similar chair.
How to choose a booster location?
There are several places in the car, the safety of which allows their use to accommodate the child.
When approving these places for installing child booster seats, the level of complexity of the injuries received and the emergency statistics were taken into account.
- behind the driver's seat - this place is least damaged, especially in a collision "on the forehead";
- in second place for protection and safety - the central part in the rear seat.
This is due to the fact that no matter where in an emergency the driver turns the steering wheel, the blow falling on the rear of the car will affect the child minimally.
It is strictly forbidden to transport children by car, fixing the booster in the front passenger seat.
Baby booster seat - from what age?
Separately, it is necessary to mention children older than 6-7 years. In such cases, the rules for transporting children in cars are violated much more often than babies of the 1-2 age group. Usually, parents mistakenly believe that to ensure the safety of a small passenger, it is enough to put either a pillow or a folded blanket under it and fix it with a stationary seat belt. Only this is not so at all!
By fixing the child in this way, the parents put him at even greater risk than if the baby was not fastened at all. If the driver needs to perform emergency braking, a pillow that is not fixed by absolutely nothing will quickly move forward under the action of inertia. In this case, the lower part of the baby’s body will lean forward behind the pillow. Automatically, the child will slide down, and there will be a seat belt on his neck.
It’s easy to imagine, you must admit, what can happen in such a case - the risk that your child will suffer serious, and possibly fatal, injury increases many times. That is why children who are able to sit on their own, but the regular seat belt cannot be fastened correctly, need to be transported in a car using a child booster seat. It raises the child to a height that allows you to securely fasten it with a stationary seat belt.
The service life of the boosters is quite spatial - it can be used for both six-year-old babies and twelve-year-olds. A booster can serve as long as the growth of a small passenger is not more than 150 centimeters. Such is the lower bar, which is stipulated in the rules of the road.
Baby booster seat with Isofix. Features
Before purchasing a child booster seat in a car, it is recommended to check the Isofix system in the car.
If it is, then the choice must be made in favor of a booster with a similar mount. Such models cost a little more, but will provide reliable and maximum fixation of the child. In this case, the booster is attached directly to the car body, while providing a stable, rigid grip.
Additional protection and fixation should be provided with regular seat belts.
Such models of children's booster seats are installed and removed in a matter of seconds. The Izofix mount will provide the baby in the car with the highest possible safety.
Fastening the booster seat belts
There are only two types of mounting a child booster seat in a car. The first - with the help of stationary seat belts, which are necessarily present in all modern car models.
In this case, any booster is suitable, the main thing is that the model has armrests. Such boosters are simply installed in the back seat, and the child acts as a retainer. Keep in mind that the transverse seat belts are not enough, the booster is fastened with three-point belts.
When installing a booster, the following points must be considered:
- belt tension - tight, but not uncomfortable fixation;
- neck compression or compression of the internal organs is not allowed;
- the height of the armrest - such a placement is necessary in which the baby does not have to reach for the armrests;
- lack of slip - the belt is fastened only after you achieve a good fit of the booster to the surface of the seat.
The direct installation process takes only a few seconds:
- install the booster;
- we put a child on him;
- we pull and fix the belts.
When you start moving, pay attention to whether the booster is sliding and whether the small passenger is well fixed.
Advantages and disadvantages
The advantages of children's booster seats include the following:
- low price (a booster costs an average of 400 rubles to 3 thousand rubles - this is an order of magnitude cheaper than a car seat);
- compactness and lightness (the booster is ideal for a small car in which a bulky chair does not fit);
- comfort and convenience (a child in the booster is fixed with only one stationary seat belt. This is much more comfortable than a five-point fixation).
And to the disadvantages:
- low level of protection (the child in the booster is not protected from a blow to the side and may, in the event of a collision, hit his head on the glass);
- simplified tests (verification and testing of boosters is less thorough than that of special car seats).
No matter how high-quality and reliable a child’s car booster seat is, a rigid fixation, of course, will not work. There is a risk, even with a normal ride, shifting the seat under the child. And this, in turn, will lead to the displacement of the belt, which can transmit the neck or internal organs. And in case of sudden braking, such a device does not guarantee absolute safety.