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TENNESSEE'S CHILD RESTRAINT LAW
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Children younger than age 1 or weighing 20 pounds or less must ride facing the rear and in the back seat.
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If your rear-facing child safety seat has a weight limit, use it as long as your child's weight permits. Check the manufacturer's instructions.
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Children ages 1 through 3, and too big for rear-facing seats, must ride in forward-facing child safety seats in the back seat.
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Children ages 4 through 8, less than 4'9", must ride in belt-positioning booster seats in the back seat. They must use both lap and shoulder belts.
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Children ages 9 through 12, measuring 4'9" or more, must buckle up. They should also ride in the back seat.
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All children ages 13 through age 15 must buckle up. This is a primary offense. Police officers can stop cars just because someone is not properly restrained. They can give tickets with fines $50 or more.
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Thirty years ago this month, Tennessee was the first state in the country to adopt a law mandating that all children under the age of 4 ride in a child safety seat while traveling in a motor vehicle. The rest of the nation followed. Today, all 50 states and the District of Columbia have child occupant protection laws.
The late Roberts Sanders, M.D., known as "Doctor Seat Belt," convinced the state General Assembly to pass the Tennessee Child Passenger Safety Law. He's remembered for his deep passion and strong commitment to children's safety. Dr. Sanders was a quiet spokesman, but was one of our nation's most important voices in the fight to protect children.
Since the inception of "Dr. Seat Belt's Law", Safe Kids Tennessee has worked diligently to educate and help parents and caregivers understand and comply with Tennessee's Child Passenger Safety Law. And, Safe Kids Tennessee pledges to continue to be a voice for children that Dr. Sanders so brilliantly echoed 30 years ago.
Safe Kids Tennessee and its local coalitions - Safe Kids Chattanooga, Safe Kids Greater Knoxville, Safe Kids Cumberland Valley (Nashville) and Safe Kids Mid-South (Memphis) has been a strong voice to help ensure that children of all ages are protected from the leading health risk they face today - accidental injury. By mobilizing communities at the local level, Safe Kids Tennessee provides public education programs, facilitates engineering and environmental modifications, helps enact and enforce laws and conducts research to drive these programs and determine the efficacy of our efforts.
Safe Kids Tennessee is headquartered at Le Bonheur Children's Medical Center in Memphis for the state. For additional safety information or to find out about the coalition, call (901) 287-6730 or click here.
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