My 2Yr. Old Is in a Booster Seat & He Is Unbuckling His Seatbelt Constantly!!!

With my son we used "fear" per say. I explained that police officers arrest people that do not follow the laws and take them to jail away from those they love. By law you have to wear your seat belt, and if you don't and a police officer finds out you will be in very big trouble with them. (Making it someone elses rule that I merely enforce.) This works well for us. I have never had an issue with my son not wearing his seat belt correctly...and he makes sure everyone else has theirs on also. ;) I'm not sure which state your located in but in IN the law is 4 year old and 40 lbs in a 5 point harness, and 8 years old and 80 lbs before your allowed to go without a booster seat! I know we didn't move my son until he was 4 and half to a booster seat, that's when he hit 40 lbs, but he was very very tall for his age and the seat belt hit his body in the poper locations.

To be in a booster seat a child must be 4 & 40 pounds. I would put him back in a car seat. My son has one (he is just shy of his 4th bday) with a five point harness that eventually the straps can come off & be used as a booster. As you stated your son is unsafe in just a seatbelt- he NEEDS a carseat!!!

Another vote for a 5-point harness, here.

My six year old - over 50 pound son is still in a 5 point harness.

Best of luck.

J.,
In Ohio the law is they have to be in an actual car seat (with harness) until age 4 AND 40 pounds. Even if that is not the law in your state, it is the most safe. The safety instructions on our car seat said you could keep the child in that seat even longer than that. The longer the better. SO even if it's not the law, why not keep your son in that until he is older? It will be safer for him and he also would have a harder time getting himself out of it!! I know they can be a hassle, but your child's safety is WORTH IT!
Good luck!
D.

I am in a similar situation with my daughter. She is just over 3 and in a 5-point harness car seat but is both able and more than willing to unbuckle herself. Of course I scold her and tell her not to and for the most part she is listening. However, I would feel quite a bit better if there was some way to physically prevent this. Someone mentioned turning the buckle around but I am struggling to visualize this. Does anyone have more information on this tactic or know of any other options?

Okay, first of all, why is he in a booster seat????? He is way to young for that!! Maybe it is faster and easier for you as a parent, but it is not the smart thing to do...he is not mature enough to sit in a seat without a 5 point harness! You are going to be so distracted trying to keep him in his seat, you will either get in a wreck or cause one. Also, there is a law in Indiana with an age and weight limit on booster and carseats. You can go to in.gov and check that out. Your pediatriician probably has information on this as well. Put the child back in the regular carseat for his and everyone else's safety.

Dear J.:
Please know that everyone here wants you and your wonderful child to be safe. You have made an error in judgement and there are some easy fixes. As stated below please go and purchase a five point harness car seat that will fit your child. Read the directions and don't forget to mail in the recall card. After you have done this, go to WWW.Preventinjury.org this is the Automotive Safety group within their site you will find contacts for Permanant fitting stations. Call and make an appointment to have your new car seat checked to make sure it is in properly. There is a list for 101 diffrent sites within Indiana. Here is a list of car seat clinics for the near future. While it may be tempting to ignore the advice you have recieved here Please
don't, no one ever thinks they could loose a child in a car crash. You can, I work with injury prevention everyday and yet one day I recieved a call to come home immediately, my family had been in a crash. Upon arrival I learned that my 13 year old niece and my only sister was killed instantly. What was the mistake, my niece was in the front seat instead of the back. Children under the age of 14 need to be in the back seat. Children that still fit the car seat and booster seat perameters need to be in the appropriate seats. I live with my loss every day as does the rest of my family. I NEVER thought it could happen to me but it did. Please leave now and get the new car seat. Don't wait one more day. God bless and keep you and yours safe.

I have to say I agree with most of the other suggestions. I believe the current recommendations are that children should remain in a car seat, not booster seat, until they are 4 years AND 40 pounds. Even though your child is close to the recommended weight, 2 year old bodies are just not developmentally ready for a seat belt - they are much safer in a 5 point harness type seat. Not to mention they are much harder to unlatch that a regular seat belt. I wish you luck - hopefully you can find a seat that will meet your needs and keep you son safe!

Your son should still be in a 5 point harness seat until he is 40 pounds. Being that he is only two, you have to be in control of this situation. Returning him to the 5 point harness will also return the control to you~at least until he reaches that 40 pound mark! Since you really cannot reason with a two year old, this will help buy you some time until you can make it clear to him that he cannot unstrap when he wants. I realize that 38 pounds is close to 40, but my children were told by their pediatrician that they need to be in the 5 point harness until they reached 40 pounds. My daughter is almost 7 and only weighs 38 pounds. My son is 5 and weighs 39 pounds. They both are still in their 5 point harness seats until they reach the "magic" number! I don't mean to be overly critical, but it is the law.

J.-
Seriously I think you need to call you local police department. I believe that law in Ohio sates your child must be at leaset 4 years of age ( it could even be 5) and 40 lbs before leaving a car seat. I am sure that while you are trying to be compliant, you are actually ebing illegal with our son in a car seat. In fact, I know. There are MANY car seats out there 5 point systems that are designed for kids up to 70lbs so your little bundle of joy wont be able to undue to seat belt. I'd get on thisone fast too I'd hate for something to happen and you are a concerned mom who just did not know.

OK here is the deal with car seats (as I have read and researched). Yes, booster seats are safe for children over 30lbs but the thing is you want to keep him harnessed in as long as possible. Most car seats harness up to 40lbs. Since your son is just approaching that... how long have you had him in the booster? But here is the catch, b/c some children like yours reaches the lb limits on harnessing (in most seats) before they are mature enough to understand the dangers of getting out of our seat belts in the car. I personally think that although my own 2 year old is normally very well behaved in the car I don't think that he would fully understand the no taking of the seatbelt thing. So as far as I know there is NO gadget that keeps the belt buckled. What you need to do is to go out and invest in a car seat that harnesses over 40lbs. There are some really great ones on the market. The Graco Natalius harnesses up to 65lbs and then turns into a high back booster. I bought an Evenflo Triumph ADVANCE that harnesses up to 50lbs (or five years of age). Those you can both find at walmart. Also, Britax makes ones that harness longer than 40lbs (there are a few) and you can look at those at Target. Also, check online because I know that Fisher Price makes ones comparable to the Britax ones and Sunshine kids makes on too that harnesses past 40lbs. Good luck keeping that boy safe!
www.momtomombiz.com

I have had the same problem. My daughter is going to be 3 in 2 weeks and I've had her in a high back booster seat because she is too tall for the other carseats and she's about 45lbs. She was taking her seat belt off as well. I just tried to make sure she had something to do while she was sitting back there like a book or some sort of toy she could concentrate on instead of the seat belt. She has stopped taking it off but I think my mother scared her by yelling at her about it. Good luck with your battle.

We had this problem with our three year old when we moved her to the booster. We told her that the policeman would write her a ticket... we reminded her that the police would not hurt her because we did not want her to be scared of police. We told her that a ticket would not be good... it would cost her a lot of money and she might have to sell her toys to pay for the ticket. We even had a policeman talk to her and tell her that it was very important to stay in her seatbelt. We had to remind her a few times but that worked for us. Now she asks if she can unbuckle before she does it.

I'd just put him back in a car seat. My convertible goes up to 100lbs, I don't know how high yours went. If you were ever pulled over for any reason, you could be fined or arrested for child endangerment. Check out the laws, he's too young for a booster! It will probably be a little hard to get him back in the seat but don't you think the struggle is worth is life? If he fights you too much on it, you can always take him to a police station and ask a cop to tell him he has to be in the car seat and can't unbuckle it. Sometimes an outside authority helps.

Here's the law:
A belt positioning booster seat can be used for children age 4 to 8 years of age, 40 to 80 pounds and up to 4’9” tall.

Link to confirm:
http://www.ripleycounty.com/sheriff/seatbelt.html

My advice is to go to the store and buy him a 5 point harness. 2 year's old is too young to have in a booster seat, even at 38lbs. 5 point harnesses are MUCH safer for children. They have them that go up past 100 lbs. My 4 year old is in a 5 point still and my 7 almost 8 year old is still in a booster. You can't be too careful when it comes to the safety of your children. I'd save the booster for when he's much bigger and older! Good luck!

I agree you really need to get him into a 5 point harness, he is way to young to be buckled in with a regular seat belt. Even though he is 38# his body is not strong enough if you were to get into an accident. I also still have my 4yr old in a harness and my 6 yr old is in a high back booster with the seat belt.

A.

When my second son was 18months old he was 3 feet tall and 34? pounds. I feel your pain. At the time we had an old van with lap strap only seatbelts. We had to bite the bullet and buy a very pricey car seat called the Safeguard Go. It works with either lap or shoulder seat belts, is a 5 point harness system and uses tether straps to the hilt. It's good for up to 100lbs. I balked at the price, but felt I had no other choice for my son. This is the BEST car seat. He is now 38 months old and still doesn't undo himself. Whenever we have him in a regular booster seat in my husbands car and we travel more than 1/2 an hour he unbuckles himself, but never in the Safeguard Go one. Good luck!

J.,
Try a good swat on his hand when he does it, a couple of those and he might just quit!

R.

It would be great if you could get your son back into a seat with an internal harness. I know most conventional restraints have harnesses that only go to 40 lbs. However, there are many choices on the market that offer protection up to 65lbs. in an internal harness. He would have a more difficult time getting out of a restraint with an internal harness vs. the lap and shoulder belt that you use with a booster seat. I can recommend a few different models available if you would like to contact me at my e-mail address, ____@____.com. I am a certified child passenger safety instructor and would be happy to help you with this issue as I see it a lot with many parents and children.
N. Blackwell

I don't know how much feedback you have gotten- but I would get him into a seat with a five point harness that is made for heavier weight kids. I know Britax makes some that go up to like 60 lbs.. that way it's much harder to undo, and it's way safer! Good Luck! My 3 1/2 year old learned how to open his door on his side- and that stresses me out all the time!

R.

Make sure he is in the correct seat & belts for his age & weight. You can never be too careful with children in the car. There seems to be a lot of good info and advice here about that. Aside from the correct seat, instead of a safety device, I think you need to be stern with him and give consequences for unbuckling himself. After all, this is a safety issue. And you said you get a sly smile from him - it's obvious he knows what he's doing and he knows he can get away with it. If he's understanding that, he can understand what you're telling him about safety. Give punishment for unbuckling. Take something away - something he will miss immediately - maybe he has books or music he likes to have while in the car - take it away. If he can't obey the simple rule, threaten to put him back in a "baby" car seat - with the car seat straps. Then, of course, if he doesn't listen, you have to follow through or he'll know you don't mean what you say. I wouldn't fool around with this. Lay down the law and stick to your guns. I sound like an old western... =)
I explained to mine early on about the safety issue and consequences for disobeying along with telling them it's the law. I told them it's the law and if I don't have them buckled up correctly, we'll be in "trouble" from the police. have never had a problem... but they know I'm going to do what I said I'd do - that goes for good and bad!
It may be difficult but you have to establish early - who's the boss here?
Love & prayers - B.

I agree with the other two women : )

There is NO REASON for a 2 year old to be in a booster seat!! A 2 year old lacks the ability to sit still, not squirm around and to keep the belt buckled. Many 3 year olds are not mature enough to handle a booster! There are MANY carseats available today that have a harness weight limit of 65lbs so he won't be outgrowing that anytime soon! My 2 year old daughter is 39 pounds and we bought the Graco Nautilus for her a few months ago. She loves it and the harness goes to 65lbs. Just yesterday I installed the new carseat for our 9 month old - who is already 21 pounds. Her carseat is the First Years True Fit carseat which just came out a few months ago. It's rearfacing to 35lbs and forward-facing harness to 65lbs. The Graco Nautilus is $150 and we paid $180 for the True Fit. There are several other carseats that go to 65lbs in the harness, too. My almost-6-year-old could still fit in those seats, even. But he's been in a booster seat for a couple years and is more than mature enough to sit still (to keep the seat belt in the correct position across his body) and only unbuckle when parked.

OMG I hope you are kidding! In the event that you seriously have your 2 year old in a booster I also recommend the Graco Nataulis. It's going to give you the best bang for your buck. Seriously there are 5 point harnesses that go up to 80lbs. My 2 year old will be harnessed wayyyyy bast 4 and 40lbs, that is the minimum! You are seriously risking your childs life with using a booster at 2 years old!

My son also tried doing this. Knowing that his safety was at steak, I had to be VERY firm. When he unbuckled his seatbelt I very firmly told him no, pulled the car over immediately, got out of the car, opened his door and told him that was bad he has to be safe in the seatbelt and he was to never do that again. I gently held his face in my hands and used a firm voice with him. I told him if he did it again we were going home and he was having a time out. I did want him to think this was a game, I kept thinking of him getting hurt if he took off his seatbelt. I knew I could not live with myself knowing that I was making light of this. There are some things in parenting that are non-negoatiable and safety in the car is one of them. If you do not make it clear that this is not OK, he will continue doing it. You are his mom, be strong and consistent and the behavior will stop. Good Luck :).

my son did the same thing when he was that age...i just turned the part that you press to release it towards his carseat & pulled the seat belt so tight i had to use a small screw driver to get down there to open the release button. when he was 3 1/2 he out grew the 5 point harness seats by height & weight so we had to go with a booster seat, i resorted to putting him up front with me since i didn't have airbags on the passenger side, i just slid the seat back as far as it would go & reclined it a hair so his body went with the form of the seat and the seat belt wouldn't choke him. i lived near an army post in ky before we moved here & they had alot of vehicle check points each week and every time i got stopped they said i did the right thing, that by having him in hte back seat like that there was no one to supervise him. it's your call though.

I had that problem with the 10 year old I am raising now. I know it sounds hard, but I found a way to change the belt around and buckled it behind him. It wasn't easy getting him in and out, but it did the safety thing.
Nothing is scarier then to look up and see your child is out of his seat standing in the back of the van waving at a police officer!!! Yes, he did that to me and I was only a block from the daycare. I pulled over immediately, reseated and buckled him in (the police officer had pulled in behind me) and before we had gone a block he was out again, I pulled over again and went through the same routine.
Actually it was the police officer who suggest I turn the the belting and latch it behind the seat, seems he had a child who did the same thing, sigh.
P. R

I know a booster is much easier and faster to get the child in and out of, but safety is much more important than our convenience. My 6 yr. old used a high back booster with 5 pt. harness on it until her last birthday, which I now have it down to just a booster with the lap/shoulder belt. She could never get the 5pt. harness undone herself. She is almost too tall now for the high back booster and then I will have to go to just a seat type booster without the back.
I actually wish they designed a seat belt in the van with a 5 pt. harness for bigger kids, even adults.
With 5 pt. harness you are much less likely to get whiplash. With a lap/shoulder belt, you are still going to get thrown forward or sideways somewhat.

I would put him in a forward facing,5 point harness car seat until he is a bit older and then he cannot get out of that and will remain safe and you can feel comfortable knowing he cannot escape. I think they should be a bit older to be in the booster seat w/seat belt. Your doctor or health department could give you the guidelines.
Good luck. How scarey!!! They are at an honery age of thinking it is funny to disobey. I have a 3 1/2 year old and a 16 month old. Life is never dull!

2 years old is much too young to be in a booster seat. There are many harnessed car seats that go up to 65 pounds.
In most states and in Canada, the minimum is 4 years old AND 40 lbs. Ideally, the minimum would be higher. I personally won't put my ds (who weighs 40lbs at 3.5yo) in a booster until he's at least 5. They just aren't mature enough emotionally to be able to sit properly until then. And their bodies aren't physically able to endure that kind of stress (with just a seat belt) as well in a wreck.
5 point harnesses are BY FAR the safest. That's why race car drivers use them.

Definitely look for a carseat with a higher weight limit. Sunshine Radian is one option. That's what we have and we love it. The Apex is also a good option, it's cheaper and it turns into a booster. You MUST have high seat backs in order to use it though.
The Evenflo Triumph now harnesses up to 50lbs (which should take you a few years).
The Graco Nautilus harnesses up to 65lbs, and then converts to a booster.
There are others if you want to research it more.

Please, for your son's safety, buy a better carseat. Save the booster for when he gets old enough to safely use it, or pass it on to someone else.

I would be VERY wary of using anything that would make it harder to unbuckle him- you'd have a hard time unbuckling him in case of an emergency.

I didn't have this problem for very long. Plus I think my daughter saw how upset it made me. Our seat belts were located that I could turn it around and pull it tight and she couldn't get her fingers to the button. I also told her I would take away her "big girl seat" if she kept unbuckling herself. I would allow her to unbuckle herself when we were getting out of the car, but she was a little older than 2 years.

I think your son is not big enough and too young to be in a booster. Put him back in his car seat.

However, I know when my niece unbuckled herself a few times (she was 5 or 6 at the time) the car was immediately stopped until she was buckled up again and she was made to understand how dangerous it was for her to be unbuckled.

My son is 3.5 and weighs 42 lbs. He still fits in his car seat and it is approved up to 100 lb as a booster. I am actually considering buying a bigger car seat for him instead of using his seat as a booster with a belt when he is too big for the harness.

I have a 5 year old who constantly takes off her seatbelt, so I understand. Only I'm sure it is worse with a 2 year old. I DO NOT agree with slapping the child's hand. You will only teach your child that hitting is okay, especially a child that young. I want to teach my child respectful behavior toward others.

Here's a product I found online I considered buying for my 5 year old. http://www.abledata.com/abledata.cfm?pageid=19327&top...

I agree with the lady who said swat his hand. Kids will do only what they can get away with. If there are consequences enforced, they'll learn their limitations.

I was a Child Passenger Safety Technician (certified and regulated by NHTSA) and a Paramedic for the fire department when I lived in KY. Please! put him in a 5-point harness.

www.nhtsa.gov is a great resource on child seat laws, recalls, recommendations, and for finding help with installing seats. (we all think we know how to do it, but it is not just a matter of buckling them in - I learned I was doing it wrong also when I first began my training)

Check the staticstics. With your child in a booster, he will be severely injured if you were to be in an accident.
My daughter is 4 yrs. (this Sunday) and she is in a 5 point harness. She'll be in that for quite a while still & then I will search out a better booster option than they sell in "wal-mart". We have a Britax carseat and she'll eventually (but not any time soon) be moved to a Britax booster.
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE heed the advice of the mom's on here & get your son in a safe seat.
You can go to your local fire station for a *FREE* seat inspection too.
Did you mom's know that most carseats are improperly installed, and that even if your child is in a 5 point harness, that if your seat is not properly installed (NO movement when shaking the seat) they could be injured as well!!!
I encourage EVERYONE to GO GET YOUR SEAT INSPECTED for your child's sake. It's FREE!!!

At two years old, they do figure this out, mine did as well. They seem to respond well though to an "outside party" authority figure when it comes to following rules at this age. What I did every time he undid his seat belt is pull over to the side of the road and tell him that I can't drive anymore until he buckles back up because the policeman will be upset with us and give us a ticket. I've even gone as far as going by the local police dept. on occasion and say "these are the people that keep us safe on the road and the ones that make the buckle up rule. I let him see the police cars in the parking lot and if we see a policeman out in public I will talk about it again and say, "see the policeman over there, they are the ones who make sure we are buckled up in the car. They are smart enough to understand this concept. I hope it works for you. It did for me! Good Luck! C.

The law is 40 pounds AND 4 years old not OR. Go out immediately and buy a car seat for his size. If you need, check garage sales. Now is the perfect time for those.

At age 2, no matter what his size, he should be in a 5-point harness seat. If you have any questions re carseat installation or switching to a different seat, contact a "Buckled is Best" program. Community Hospitals Indianapolis offer carseat inspections by appointment at all their hospitals. I am sure other local hospitals do, too. So do many local fire department
stations. If you need financial assistance, they can offer resources for that, also.