Children will always want to grow up faster, and do as adults do. It’s a commonly held notion that kids today are growing up a lot faster than ever before. However, when it comes to driving with your kids in the car, it’s important that you don’t throw in the towel and let them sit up front just to make them happy. Here are 5 reasons why you shouldn't let your child ride shotgun.
1. In Australia, children aged 4 and under are required to ride in the back seat by law. But to ensure that your child is secured safely, we think you should wait till roughly age 12 before you allow them to sit in the front seat.
2. Kids aged between four and seven can only sit in the front seat if all of the back seats are occupied by other passengers under seven years old. And children from birth to 7 years old must be in a correctly fitted car seat.
3. An analysis of crashes found that children in the front seat sustained more severe injuries than kids in the backseat. Children are also 40% less likely to be seriously injured when properly restrained in the back seat.
4. All children under 135cm should use a belt-positioning booster seat until the vehicle seat belt fits properly. Once a child is taller than 135cm, they can use the car's seat belt.
5. Airbags may save adult lives but can be dangerous for your children. Airbags can kill young children riding in the front seat and it is important to never place a rear-facing car seat in front of an airbag.