Madison County Health Department
Child Passenger Safety Program

To protect, promote and improve the health of our community

It is Kentucky State Law that children riding in a vehicle must be in a child safety seat or booster seat. The law (KRS189.125) states that children who are 3’4” (40 inches) tall or less must ride in a car seat. Any child, who is younger than eight and between 40 and 57 inches tall must be secured in a booster seat.

Here at the health department, we want to help you keep your child safe when riding in a vehicle. We offer car seat installations by appointment on the following days:

In Richmond
2nd Monday of the month, 3:30-5:30PM
3rd Thursday of the month, 1:30-3:30PM

In Berea
By Appointment

We also conduct car seat safety checks at special events through out the year. Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to get the updates on community car seat checks.

To make an appointment, please call 228-2044.

Madison County Car Seat Safety Community Partners

Kentucky State Police- Richmond Post- 859-623-2404

Related Info

We have some great Car Seat Pamphlets available for you to use.

Click to download the printable .pdf

Front Seat vs. Back Seat
Ky Booster Seat Law
Most Kids

Safety Recommendations for All Children

The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration has some recommendations for keeping your child safe when riding in a vehicle.

• You should choose a car seat based on your child’s age, height, and weight.

• Keep using the car seat for as long as possible, as long as your child meets the height and weight limits for the seat.

• All children under 13 years old should ride in the back seat.

Recommendation for Birth – 12 months:

• Children within this range should ride in a rear-facing seat located in the back seat of the vehicle.

Recommendations for 1-3 years:

• These children should still ride in a rear-facing seat located in the back seat of the vehicle.

• If the child has outgrown the height and weight limits for the rear-facing seat, he/she can ride in a forward-facing car seat.

Recommendations for 4-7 years:

• Children within this age range should ride in a forward-facing car seat with a harness located in the back seat of the vehicle until they outgrows the seat.

• The child can ride in a booster seat if he/she has outgrown a forward-facing car seat.

Recommendations for 8-12 years:

• Children within this range should ride in a booster seat until he/she is big enough to fit in a regular seat belt.

• The regular seat belt fits properly when the lap belt fits across upper thighs and not the stomach, and the shoulder belt fits across the shoulder and chest not the neck or face.

• Children under 13 years old should still ride in the back seat of a vehicle even after they outgrow a booster seat.