Is a 5-point harness safer than a booster seat and seatbelt for an older child?
It’s a question that has been asked ever since the introduction of car seats with a higher-weight harness in the early 2000’s. To this day, there still hasn’t been a consensus in the field either way, so we’ll take a look at the evidence and try to come to a conclusion.
Myth: Even for School-Age Kids, a Car Seat with a 5-Point Harness Is Always Safer than a Booster Using a 3-Point Lap/Shoulder Seatbelt
So right off the bat, I want to make a few points. When I say “always”, I mean for neurotypical, booster-age children (let’s say age 5 and up) who weigh at least 40 lbs. but still fit in a harnessed car seat. It’s established that 5-point harnesses are safer for children under 40 lbs. and for kids who cannot sit in the proper position for an entire car ride, but for mature school-age children, we need to look at the evidence to see if there’s an advantage either way.
First, let’s look at the studies that have compared properly fitting seat belts (meaning in a booster for kids age 5 and up) and 5-point harnesses in similar crash circumstances:
….
That’s right, there aren’t any. Zip, zilch, zero. So that will make this a bit more challenging.
There are a number of studies that compare children in 5-point harnesses to seat belts alone and a number that compare children in belt-positioning boosters to seat belts alone, and even one Canadian study that compared boosters with a 5-point harnessed seat but with a dummy that was heavier than the weight limit of the harness. But none that compare children in 5-point harnesses to children in belt-positioning boosters for older kids. One study did show a modest benefit of a 5-point harness over boosters for 3-year olds, but showed much smaller benefits for 4-year olds and concluded, “The results for any type of injury support the recommendation for graduation at 4 years or about 40 pounds in general, although it may be the case that more severe injuries are better prevented by CRS (Child Restraint System with harness) even at 4 years old.”
Photo Credit: Transport Canada
So despite the past research, we don’t have any firm evidence to tell us whether older kids (5+) are safer in boosters vs. forward-facing 5-point harnesses. I’m sure it will be no surprise that in the studies that exist, both 5-point harnesses and high back belt-positioning boosters both reduce the risk of injuries to children as compared to seat belts alone. But that doesn’t help us here.
So we’ll take a step back and look at the established pros and cons of each restraint type.
5-point Harness (forward-facing):
Pros:
- When used correctly, they almost completely eliminate the risk of ejection in all types of crashes.
- They disperse the crash forces over more areas of the body, which equals less force in each area.
- They keep a child optimally positioned throughout a car ride, even when asleep.
- They have a tether that reduces forward head excursion (as compared with non-use of tether).
Cons:
- The harnessed seat must be installed properly with less than one inch of movement and tethered for maximum effectiveness
- The harness straps must be appropriately tightened (to pass the pinch test), otherwise, the child will experience greater head excursion – increasing the chances that the head will strike something inside the vehicle
- The harness has a weight limit and a height limit that must not be exceeded
- In holding the body against the seat, the neck may incur increased forces in a frontal crash
Belt-Positioning Booster with 3-point Lap/Shoulder Belt:
Pros:
- Seatbelt retracts on its own, so there’s less risk of it being too loose
- No complicated installation process
- No weight limit on seatbelts
- Backless boosters will have less head excursion in frontal crashes simply because the head is starting off in a more rearward position initially
- A lap/shoulder seatbelt allows the neck and spine to move together more easily (compared to 5-pt harness)
Cons:
- Kids can move out of optimal position easily and frequently, especially while sleeping or leaning forward to look at a device
- Some booster seats don’t have LATCH to hold them in place while loading or unoccupied
- More variables involved (as compared to properly used 5-pt harness) that cannot be accounted for pre-crash. Example: At what point in the crash sequence does the retractor lock? Does the child “roll out” of the shoulder belt during the crash? Does the child submarine under the lap belt?
- Seatbelts provide fewer points of restraint with the body, which may mean a greater chance of head excursion, ejection, and submarining in severe crashes. Especially a concern in far-side impacts, rollovers, and multi-impact crashes.
Well. That didn’t really help much, now did it?
We unquestionably need more investigation on head/neck forces in 5-point harnesses versus 3-pt seatbelt. When a body is harnessed into a seat, the only real free movement comes above and below the harness- so we see the neck snap forward (why rear-facing is recommended for younger kids) and the arms and legs go flying forward. It’s a lot of pressure on the neck, which isn’t ideal for children before their spine is fully ossified (converted from cartilage to bone).
Photo Credit: Consumer Reports
In a seatbelt, there is more rotational movement of the body around the shoulder belt, which may, theoretically, reduce the forces acting on the head and neck because the spine is also moving. What we don’t know is if it’s a meaningful decrease in neck forces or if this theory even pans out in real life, especially for older kids. And, even if there is a meaningful decrease in neck forces in a 3-pt seatbelt, is it significant enough to offset an increased risk of ejection or partial ejection in a booster – especially in side impacts and rollovers?
So, I realize this is anticlimactic, but:
BUSTED, PLAUSIBLE OR CONFIRMED?
Ummmmm, PLAUSIBLE?
There’s no real answer here, which is as frustrating for me as it is for you, I can assure you. I think the big takeaways are:
- Children who cannot sit properly in a seatbelt through an entire car ride (even when asleep) NEED to be in a 5-point harness, even if we find out that seatbelts are better in some ways.
- Proper use of both 5-point harnessed seats and belt-positioning boosters greatly reduce the risk of injury in a crash.
- The type of crash (which cannot be predicted in advance) plays a big role in determining crash outcomes and some crash types like side-impacts, oblique-impacts, and rollovers usually have much worse outcomes than frontal and rear-impacts.
- We need someone to really study this.
I promise to update when/if more information becomes available. In the meantime, I’d love to hear what other people have found when researching this themselves.
Check out more of CSB’s popular Mythbusting series:
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3-Across & Adjacent Car Seat Installations
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My daughter is 3 1/2 years old. We just purchased a 3 in 1 high back booster. The weight limit for this booster is 50 My daughter weighs 60 lbs. I decided to use the seat belt positioning but I stil do not feel comfortable with it, but if I were to use the harness I’m afraid in an accident it wouldn’t hold her in. I really need some advice. In my research I have found it’s best to go by the weight. She will be 4 3/2019.
Hi April! I am hesitant to say that because of your daughter’s weight she should be in a high back booster. She is still very young, and I would say for sure that the minimum age to be in a booster is 5.There are several seats the harness t 65-90 lbs. Are you able to purchase a new seat?
Lindsey,
No harnessed seats in the US go above 65 pounds anymore.
In April’s case step one would be getting a seat that goes to 65 pounds, and toss out her Baby Trend Hybrid.
These new recommendations were just issued. Seems agreement is harnessed is better until weight limit is reached. https://www.aap.org/en-us/about-the-aap/aap-press-room/Pages/AAP-Updates-Recommendations-on-Car-Seats-for-Children.aspx
My son is 3, and above 99th percentile in height, weight, and width…. This means by his fourth birthday he will be too big for every booster on the market, because they all max out at 4′ 9″ tall (boosting no longer necessary), or are limited to the width of a standard car seat. He is currently in the widest booster conversation seat we could find.
Don’t let personal bias taint your perseption of alternative car harnesses. Stigmas have driven valuable alternatives from the market before, and this religion of car safety standards has made it nearly impossible for me to keep my son safe due to legalistically pairing size and age together legally in car seat laws. At one year old, he was too big for every backwards facing seat within my budget. He would be out of even the expensive alternatives by 1.5 years.
You cannot force muscle and bone to grow the way legally mandated by legalists. These harnesses are my last alternative of bridging the gap from my son’s age and his size. Thankfully they are still on the market, and I hope they remain!
Oh my gosh! Just out of curiosity how tall is he?! My 7 year old is in the 95 percentile. But she is 55 inches and still has three to go before she outgrows her 5 point harness.
My 7 year old daughter is 47” tall and 58 pounds. I still have her in a high back booster with a harness seat; the Britax Pinnacle.
I feel it’s the safest option and plan to stick with it as long as possible! My daughter doesn’t complain about it ….. yet!
While it’s not the most convenient for me, I care more about her safety than my own convenience. Just my opinion.
Until I see proof that a 3 point seat belt is as safe as a harness, we will continue using the harness.
And the Britax Pinnacle with the Clicktight installation system is ROCK SOLID. The car seat does not move!!! And it’s SO EASY to install it’s unbelievable!!!
I was worried about it not latching into the car, until I saw this clicktight installation with my own eyes!
Thank you for this useful article. Two years later, I’m wondering if you know of any research that has been done. I did some cursory searching and couldn’t find any, I think mostly because it was hard to find useful search terms. My kids are in Frontiers. I just took my 12 y.o. out of the high-back booster a few months ago because he was too tall. Before that, I think he was 11 when I took him out of the 5-point harness to transition to the booster, again because he got to big for the harness seat. Now I have a 9 y.o. and an 11 y.o., still in 5-points. They’re starting to complain, something my oldest child never did. I could never live with myself if something happened to them that could’ve been avoided if I’d insisted they stay in the harnesses until they maxed out. But they’re so big and old, both about 54″ and 60 lb that the stuff I’m finding online doesn’t really seem relevant.
Anyway, I’d love to hear if you’d learned about anything new in this area. Thanks.
I came across this post last night by accident. My kids are well past this point in their life, but I thought I would comment on it. To offer some information, there was actually a study done on this very topic back in either late 2011 or early 2012. It was a European study if my memory serves me right. Although despite my best efforts I cannot remember exactly who did the study and I was unable to track it down online. So, I am not sure if it even still exists or if something more modern has been done on the subject.
Back in the early 2000’s were really when the first higher weight limit harness seats were coming on the market. It was done looking at whether they really offered a benifit to a 6 to 8 year old child. Again, I wasn’t able to find the study so take what I am posting here with a grain of salt. What the study found was that if the child was positioned correctly in a booster in a front or rear impact crash they were reasonably close in the test data. The harness did offer some tanible benifits in either a side impact or roll over if I remember correctly. Again, I advise you to take this patiently as the study is several years old and I wasn’t able to find it to review it again.
My advice on the matter is a little more mixed from a personal experice. It really depends on the child and your available resources for their safety. For starters a high weight limit harnes seat is significantly more expensive than a high back booster. If your child is already getting close to the upper bound on the harness weight limit and can sit with a 3 point belt correctly. Then you have to decide if it’s the right choice in your situation. Likewise, once a kid gets past the 5 year old range, they are pretty capable of knowing how a harness works. A lot of the ones I have seen are capable of buckling themselves and may insist on doing so. A harness is only safer if it’s properly installed and it’s snugged up propperly.
An older child fastening themselves in might no do up the straps securely enough. Alternatively if they get uncomfortable they might slip the shoulder belts or loosen it in route. Where as a 3 point belt is self tightening and simpler to monitor. Either it’s where it needs to be or it isn’t. It comes down to the maturity and size of your child, how diligent you are going to be with the system you choose and your financial capabilities.
On the other side of the fence I will make a quick reference to my neighbor. She should probably be in line for the over protective mother of the year award. Her kids are currently 12 and 14 and they are still riding in the back seat in a harness. So, it really comes down to personal choice and responsibility here.
John
Hi all! Just like many of you, I’ve been searching for the perfect car seat solution for my 6 1/2 year-old daughter. She’s tall for her age, but after having her in a booster without 5-point harness for several weeks, I think I would feel better going back to a 5-point harness. We were in the city last week, and I had her sit in the Britax Frontier. I was thrilled that the shoulder harness slots were so tall, however, we didn’t buy it yet because I just wanted to make sure. Did any of you go back to the harness after having your child out of it? My daughter really seems to like being in a belt-positioning booster. ugh. I wish I’d never let her try it. Also….this is minor, but how is the installation of the Clicktight system? I’ve been so spoiled by using the latch on her Boulevard, and I can’t imagine using a belt again.
Hi Heather, what is your daughter’s weight? Depending on when your Boulevard was made, she may be close to or even above the maximum weight for using LATCH. There is a label with the limit if it was made within the last few years.
The Frontier and Pinnacle are among the easiest seatbelt installs on the market. They also have the tallest harness height limit and highest practical weight limit.
That said, if she is mature enough to remain seated properly in a booster seat and is above 40 lbs, then that is a safe option for her if it fits correctly.
Hi Heather! We did briefly move our daughter to a high-back booster seat, and we allow one of the grandparents to use one in her car (it’s a Diono Monterey that we purchased for her) because our daughter can sit properly for short distances, and my mother is super strict on sitting properly in the vehicles. With that said, my eight and a half year old daughter is 56” tall and 62lbs. We purchased the Britax Pinnacle for her in November 2018 because she outgrew her Diono Rainers that we had in both vehicles. She still uses the harness because we travel great distances with her often. It isn’t unusual for us to decide to take a “quick” day trip to Disney when it’s actually over three hours away. We also drive 340 miles a week for her competition dance classes and rehearsals. I need her to be super safe! She initially seemed disappointed that she “downgraded” to a “baby seat” again, but her dad and I talked with her about how much we loved her and would be devastated if anything ever happened to her. We told her we were trying to do everything in our power to protect her, but this would be her very last seat. We assured her she would not go into middle school in a harnessed car seat. Haha! Well, as long as she continued growing. Now that she rides in it so often, she is perfectly fine with it. A few of her friends have gently poked fun at her for still being in a baby seat while they ride either in a booster or nothing. It all changes once they ride with me and I remind them that we just love her too much to ever want anything to happen to her. I tell them that it isn’t my driving that I’m worried about; it’s the other drivers on the road. Strangely enough, even the ones who don’t ride in boosters in their own vehicles will try to barter for a ride in my daughter’s car seat. Instead, I have a Diono highback like the one in my mom’s car (and a cheapo lowback for the rare instance when I have just too many kiddos in my SUV). We try to keep everyone safer. Also in my vehicle…NO kids or preteens in the front seat! NO exceptions! If there is room in the back, all kiddos in the back.
I had a bad wreck June with my 6 yo 68 lb 46″ tall granddaughter in a lbb booster with the handles, one of which broke off. She had taken off her shoulder strap without my realizing it and would have, but don’t we all, thought she was more mature than that but she was tired and it was uncomfortable for her to, yes, slouch. But more concerning to me is she was able to come out from under the across the belly part, wait, which most hub s don’t have anyway, do they, they use just the seat belt, which does go across this piece on this one so would she have then been safer in one like that, less able to get out from under the lap belt plus, unless I’m not sure what happened, maybe with the shoulder strap being moved that allowed the lap belt to move, which allowed the lbb to move as well, so…
I didn’t read every single comment in the bunch, and I’m clearly late to this party, but has anyone thought of the most obvious safety difference between a booster and a 5 point harness? On the occasions that my children have sat in 3 point seat belts (no matter how well fitting, with boosters, etc.), they have ALMOST NEVER sat up straight in a position in which the seat belt would be equivalently safe to a 5 point harness, which will hold them in even when sleeping. It doesn’t matter how much monitoring happens, the temptation is simply too great to be ‘comfortable’ and slouch, lean, lie down, or pull back and forth against a self-retracting seat belt. That is enough reason to make a 5 point harness FAR safer than whatever unrealistic safety tests done with perfectly positioned test dummies, etc. come up with.
Hope I didn’t offend anyone, that was not my intention. Just a real-world observation. For the record, my soon-to-be 11 year old is still in a 5 point harness (I have the largest Britax for her). Plus, they like being able to see out of the window better, which can help with motion sickness too.
No offense taken at all, but I did want to clarify that we listed as a major con of boosters that a child has to be upright in it and we specified that if a child can’t do that, they should stay in a harness. I think we all know that the maturity required in a booster is much greater than for a 5 point harness. What we were more trying to look at here was in a perfect world with a perfectly positioned child, is a 5 point harness likely to result in more or less injury than a belt positioning booster and the answer is, we just don’t know. Yet.
I agree 100%! I’ve brought this up before and it’s like people don’t understand the point in trying to make. As an adult, I move around, subconsciously put my shoulder belt under my armpit, etc. even the most mature children aren’t immune to human error. Yet, they are children and have a greater risk of injury in a crash due to their size alone.my feeling is – as long as a harness booster seat is manufactured for your child’s size, why not use it? It decreases that chance of that human error occurring.
Following. Have a yo who is in Chicco KidFit lap belt highback booster, but that’s just for city driving. Was still using his Britax Boulevard CS 70 for highway trips until it expired last year. Considering a 5-point harness booster for same use, especially since we’ll be driving halfway cross-country this summer.
Thank you so much for this article last year. I have a 9 yr old (10 in April) and a 7 yr old who are both in 5 point harnesses. I have been looking around for high back boosters that will work for both of them because my 9 yr old’s car seat is coming up on expiry. She still fits the seat as she is teeny. They are both in the Sunshine Kids Radian 65 carseats (which are no longer made). I am curious to find out the information at the conference next month as well. Will you post the results here?
I will if there’s anything to report :).
Has Anyone figured out any new info on this topic? Or has more testing been done?
Erica, not to my knowledge. There wasn’t anything presented at any of the conferences last year and the next conference is in a month, so we’ll find out then if there’s any new data.
I am trying hard to figure out seats for at least 2 of my 4 kids, and would value some feedback. My eldest two have been in the Britax Regent for at least 6 years — and as I am petite, I can actually sit in those comfortably, though my head nearly hits the top of the car. I had assumed I would buy two more Regents for my younger two eventually and now they don’t make Regents. In the Regents: my oldest is 12 but the size of my also-petite ten year old, as she has growth issues. She and my 10 year old are both using the highest harness slot on the Regents, and both are just over 4 feet tall. I thought I would be using these ’til they hit 100 lbs but I think they will be way too tall for the harness slots by the time they reach that weight. So I need to re-evaluate their needs in the next 6 months anyway.
Meanwhile, I’ve got 8 yr old twins who are typical size for their age (compared to my eldest two). The seats the twins are in are not convertible, and have the harness at the highest slot and their shoulders have now slightly eclipsed the slot sites so I need to get them in properly fitted seats asap. I see a lot of people buy 4-in-1 or 3-in-1 type seats that can save money in the long run; but these are people with children much younger than my own at this point. So I am not sure whether there is a point to buying two britax frontiers for my 8 year olds, and hope it is still comfortable for them as they grow closer to my size, when my eldest two will probably need high back self belt boosters in the next year due to outgrowing the Regents. My butt-to-shoulder height is only 21″, and if my kids are even somewhat like me, it is feasible I could make a high-shoulder harness seat like the Frontier work for them for a longer time until having any car seat aid is obsolete due to their size. My twins are presently 16″ butt-to-shoulder height (and they are the less -petite of my kids). So I don’t know whether I should forego the harness benefits and just go with something more economical, and get 4 high back boosters for all (especially when buying more than one at a time, and given the fact that all four of my kids are at the final age bracket of car seat needs anyway).
At this point, your Regents are expired so using them should be discontinued. In your manual on the “Warning” page, there’s a bullet point about the lifespan being only 6 years. The weight limit is also 80 lbs. for these seats, and you don’t mention how much your older kids weigh, so they may already be over the weight limit. I’m sure you’ll be sad to see them go; we were to see ours go. We had a Husky (predecessor to Regent) at first, then a Regent.
Given their ages and heights, I would look at highback boosters. It would be awfully hard to go from harnessed seats to backless boosters straightaway. Boosters like the Britax Parkway SGL or the Diono Monterey give you the height you need for bigger kids and the flexibility to go backless in the future when they grow too tall for the back or decide they don’t want to be seen in a highback.
I feel like your article clearly shows that the 5pt harness is superior to the belt positioned booster. All of the pros for 5pt harness are all things that can make a real difference in respect to potential injuries, whereas the cons are mostly about convenience or improper installation. I think most parents who go the extra mile to use 5 point harness seats longer are the kind who are also generally vigilant about making sure the booster is installed and positioned correctly. But I agree with you and others– more research needs to be done.
I agree more research is necessary, but I also am in favor of erring on the side of a 5 point harness. My kids all extended rear-faced until 4 and then switched to the five point harness. The spinal ossification of a 4 YO is significantly more advanced than a 2 year old and even more advanced at 8, so I would imagine the risk of a stretching of the neck decreases as the child ages (and the spinal column ossifies). So the risk to an 8 year old in a 5 point harness to neck pressure is minimal, but the risk of being out-of-position in a booster, or shouldering out of a seat beat and being ejected, remains the same (i.e., does not decrease over time). Plus, an unsecured booster in a car is a projectile risk to the driver when the child is not in the car. For that reason, my 8 year old is still in a five point harness and will be until he reaches the limits of his seat. Personally, I don’t think most parents move kids to a booster because it’s “as safe” — they move them because they perceive it as being more convenient.
our oldest child just turns 5. she was rear facing til about a month past her 4th birthday. our current car seat says 5 pt harness to 80 lbs and 57″, but she has a long torso and at 49.5 lbs her shoulders are at the top harness slot. she is 45 1/2″. the booster mode for this seat starts at 50 lbs and also goes to 57″ she has rode in a different booster seat that starts at 30 lbs and seat belt path is good and does well with the sitting, and with reminders. just want to have her in the safest option possible…. (my husband had been in a severe accident – double t-boned where he has an extended hospital stay and multiple surgeries, etc)
My daughter is almost exactly the same size: 50 lbs and 47″, turning 5 in a few weeks. She’s currently in a five-point harness Britax seat, but she complains that the straps are tight (and I’ve adjusted it properly, to no avail). I think she’d be okay in a HBB in terms of maturity, but I’ just haven’t made the switch because the evidence is so unclear. For now we’re staying where we are, and I sometimes let her do short rides in her older brother’s HBB. I think I’ll make the switch soon, though.
Thank you for this post! I hope researchers spend some time studying this issue so future parents can rest easier knowing they’ve made the switch at the right time.
My son is 7 years old, weighs 51 lbs, and is 4’2. I still have him in a 5-point harness but I’ve seen so many kids his age in the back seat without a booster or in the front passenger seat so I’m wondering if I should transition him to a backless booster seat or maybe just start using the seat belt? He’s very squirmy so I’m skeptical.
I bought an Evenflo Symphony all in one for my 4 year old son because of the high weight limit and he loves it. But I forgot to take into account that he is in the 90th percentile for height and he VERY quickly outgrew the height limit for the harness 🙁 . He is not ready to use a seatbelt positioning booster because he is very wiggly. SO…which seat would offer the highest shoulder-height limit with the harness? I see that the Britax frontier/pinnacle have a very high height limit but I’m wondering if there is a more budget friendly option. I would appreciate any recommendation. Oh, and he is 43lbs and 44 in tall.
Raina, the new version of the Britax Pioneer might be a good option for you. It’s rated to 70 lbs. with the 5-pt harness, turns into a booster and has a harness height similar to Frontier and Pinnacle. However it can be more challenging to install (it lacks the ClickTight system found on Frontier & Pinnacle) and if you move the seat around a lot or rely on others to install it, it might not be the best option. Other good choices that are more budget-friendly are the Evenflo SecureKid, Evenflo Transitions, Graco Nautilus, Graco Atlas and Graco TranZitions but none of those are as tall as Pinnacle/Frontier/Pioneer. HTH!
Raina’s child might be out of the quick-connect system anyway based on weight (42 pounds). We have the Britax Frontier — they aren’t cheap, but I am happy with them.
Great Article. Overall I am in favor of the 5 point harness design with older children too. I’ve been using 5 point harnessed seats with kids as old as 11 even 12 now for many years. However one of the main concerns to me has always been the idea of more pressure on the child’s neck and spine in the event of a crash. If only older children could be seated rear facing as well it would solve this problem. Perhaps a future mini-van with swivel around seats. Even so I see more benefits to the 5 point harness design overall vs a booster, especially with older children who’s necks and spines are stronger and more developed. Almost no kid at any age stays seated properly in a booster for any extensive ammount of time. Constant leaning forward, reaching around, belt off the shoulder etc. 5 point harness seat is best overall in my mind for multiple reasons.
May I ask what seat you own that had such a high shoulder height limit while using harness? I am having trouble finding one. Thanks!
Thank you for this great article. I was thinking about this recently when I was getting technically acceptable but not rock-solid FF seat belt installs in one of my cars. I ultimately decided that a booster was better than a harness with a poor install. I assume that many parents may have issues with the installation.
I was wondering if you could do a follow-up looking at HBBs vs. NBBs, and latched vs. unlatched boosters? I’ve tried to research these questions and think there is a similar paucity of data, but it would be great to summarize and lay out the pros and cons.
Thanks for delving into this Katie. As seat belt technology gets better, especially with weight-sensing pretensioners coming for even rear-seat passengers, perhaps boosters may outperform their five-point harness counterparts. I hope someone gets some statistics with today’s car seats. I know I see too many loose-fitting five-point harnesses out there. It would be nice if technology gives parents one less thing to worry about by automakers offering robust rear seat belts with integrated technology once a child is old enough to be forward-facing.
My pediatrician encouraged us to stay in a 5point harness as long as our child’s size was within the limits of the car seat. He pointed out that pilots, astronauts and race car drivers all use 5point harnesses to stay safe. Food for thought. Thanks for your effort on this topic!
The American Academy of Pediatrics does endorse using a 5-point harness as long as possible, so there is certainly support for this from some major organizations. Unlike their rear-facing recommendation, it is not clear that the forward-facing recommendation is based on any peer reviewed research that is available to the public.
Also consider that race cars and astronauts use extremely specialized equipment that is integrated into their vehicles, rather than being a 3rd party addon system. They are also almost certainly used perfectly each time. While they are similar in principle, they vary considerably in practice. For example, race car harness systems are usually used with HANS devices to reduce the possibility of neck load related injuries.
Absolutely fantastic article! Now when we get the popular question “Are 5 point harnesses safer than boosters for older kids?” I can just post this link lol. Yay!!!!!
I hate that we don’t have good information one way or the other. Our oldest is 5.5 and we recently switched her Frontier from harness mode to booster mode on her request and after considering some additional factors. She’s tall, with a long torso, and is 46 pounds so we were comfortable with her size being big enough for a booster. She sits properly in her booster and takes the responsibility seriously (we explained to her that in a booster SHE is responsible for her own safety with the way she sits and behaves). We also have the threat of switching back to harness mode ASAP if she doesn’t follow the rules!
That said, it bugs me to NOT know which is really safer. I’m a mechanical engineer and I’d love to get into a crash test lab with some dummies and get some real comparative data to try to settle the issue once and for all. I take some comfort in knowing that she’s still much safer in a booster than she would be in the seatbelt alone.
Great article! 🙂
I’m not so sure that real life kiddos have more neck stress in a harness, here’s an interesting study regarding the dummy limitations in the face of very low neck injuries to real children…. https://sites.google.com/a/umich.edu/cpsbestpraci/new-child-restraint-testing/dummy-limitations
That said, I’m all about more research, and wish there were a speedier cultural shift toward people not thinking it’s ok to ’round up’ their 25lb 2.5 yo’s weight and thinking a booster with a 30lb/3 yo minimum was a safe choice.
🙂
Thanks, Jools! I agree. Many years ago there was a lot of concern because crash testing showed increased neck loads for rear-facing children in restraints that had an anti-rebound feature. I don’t think that concern ever translated into real-world statistics, and these were for babies who presumably would not have the developmental advantages of a 5 or 6-year old. Plus, I think the alternative risk for a forward-facing child is much greater- head strikes against a pillar, door, or other hard part of the vehicle injury are proven risks for severe injury.
With what we know now, I think a 4-year age minimum for booster use could be supported as easily as we have justified 2-years minimum for rear-facing. As with rear-facing, there just isn’t any solid research for older kids. I happen to think the real world benefits of rear-facing are likely to be much greater for kids above 2-years old as compared to the benefits of a 5-point harness for kids over 4-years old (vs. a booster), but that’s just speculation.
Thanks, Katie, for the great article.