ARLINGTON, Va. -- The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has released recommendations for new booster seats.
Thirteen of 16 new seats for 2017 received the highest rating of BEST BET. One expert explained what that means.
"If a booster gets a BEST BET rating, it means it that it’ll provide good belt fit for a typical 4- to 8-year-old child in almost any car, minivan, or SUV," senior research engineer Jessica Jermakian of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety said.
The new BEST BETs range in price from about $40 to $250. Previous ones start at $13.
Three other seats earned the next highest rating, Check Fit. That means the seats will work for some children in some vehicles.
However, one seat that is not recommended is already on the market, the Safety 1st Summit 65. The maker of it says at no point are safety and crashworthiness compromised.
Experts say booster seats can help keep children safe.
"We know that for kids who are 4 to 8 years old that they are 45 percent less likely to sustain serious injury when they are in a booster seat than when they are in the safety belt alone," Jermakian said.
She also explained how to use the booster seats.
“Make sure that the lap belt is lying flat across the upper thighs, it's not riding up on the soft tummy, and the shoulder belt is sitting snugly at the center of the shoulder,” Jermakian said.
Here are the ratings for the new booster seat models for 2017:
BEST BET:
- Chicco GoFit (backless)
- Cosco Finale (highback)
- Cosco Finale DX (highback)
- Diono Monterey XT (backless mode)
- Diono Monterey XT (highback mode)
- Evenflo Spectrum (backless mode)
- Evenflo Spectrum (highback mode)
- Graco Wayz (backless mode)
- Graco Wayz (highback mode)
- Maxi-Cosi RodiFix (highback)
- Nuna AACE (backless mode)
- Nuna AACE (highback mode)
- Peg-Perego Viaggio Shuttle (backless)
Check Fit:
- Harmony Folding Travel Booster (highback)
- Kiddy Cruiser 3 (highback)
- Ride Safer Delighter Booster (backless)
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