LATCH vs. seatbelt, which one is safer?
This is probably the most common question that my fellow Child Passenger Safety Technicians and I get. The answer is they are equally safe, but the installation method that gives your child the best protection should be used.
The caveat to this answer, however, is that the Lower Anchors and Tethers for CHildren (LATCH) system does have a weight limit and seatbelt does not. As many parents who have struggled with car seat and car manuals have discovered, the weight limit max for the LATCH system can sometimes be ambiguous.
Since the early 2000s, all cars produced for sale in the United States are required to have the LATCH system. The purpose of the LATCH system was to create a uniform system to install car seats and reduce installation misuse. Based on National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) data, about 4 in 5 of car seats are still used incorrectly, and the LATCH system can sometimes be a source of confusion.
Beginning this month, NHTSA is proposing new LATCH regulations to reduce the ambiguity between what car manufacturers and car seat manufacturers say are the LATCH limits. Towards the end of the month, lower anchor limits in cars will be a uniform combined weight limit (car seat + child) of 65 lbs. What this means is, if you have a car seat that weighs 20lbs, you can use the car’s LATCH system until the child weighs 45lbs (20lb car seat + 45 lbs child = 65lbs).
As of now this change is a proposal and not guaranteed. However, as of now, 25 car manufacturers already utilize these guidelines and more may begin to adopt it.
If you have any questions about the proposed changes to LATCH or wish to have your car seat inspected by a certified technician, please call Texas ChildrenÕs Center for Childhood InjuryÕs Car Seat Line 832-822-2277.
This blog post was contributed by Center for Childhood Injury Prevention Health Educator John Ansiaux for Bump Watch – the blog that follows the journeys of Texas Children’s families from pregnancy through baby’s first year.