Colorado is taking a firm stance on child passenger safety, with recent legislative changes and community initiatives putting the state at the forefront of ensuring that the youngest among us are secured whenever rubber hits the road. Car Seats Colorado, WeeCycle, and AAA have partnered, as noted during Child Passenger Safety Month, to provide free car seat checks to families within the metro Denver area. The events, such as the one at Central Park Recreation Center, are designed to educate and assist caregivers in proper car seat installation and usage in compliance with state laws.
As obtained by CDOT, Shoshana Lew, the Executive Director of CDOT, emphasized the critical nature of correct car seat usage, stating, "correctly using a car or booster seat can mean the difference between life and death for children in a crash." It's a matter not only of legal compliance but also of child welfare, as the 2024 data revealed a staggering 74.8% of car seats were either installed or used incorrectly in Colorado. Such statistics underscore the importance of the recent legislative updates to the state's child passenger safety laws, which extend the age requirement for mandatory car seat or booster use from 8 to 9 years old and compel the use of rear-facing car seats until a child's second birthday.
These changes align with recommendations from authoritative bodies like the CDC, which notes a 45% reduction in the risk of serious injury among older children using booster seats instead of seat belts alone. The regulations also state that Colorado children under 9 must ride in the back seat in an appropriate car seat or booster seat. Noncompliance is a primary offense, giving law enforcement the authority to stop and issue citations for any observed violations related to child passenger safety.
However, it's not just about avoiding fines; it’s about keeping these most vulnerable passengers protected. "We owe it to our kids to do everything we can to protect them — and that starts with installing and using their car seats correctly," told Trooper Kent Trimbach, program coordinator for Car Seats Colorado, to CDOT. The right use of car seats, boosters, and seat belts is indeed a matter of life preservation, predicated on the size and developmental stage of a child rather than age alone. The state's Click It or Ticket seat belt enforcement campaign handed out 368 citations in 2025, indicating continued education and vigilance are needed.
