Kids In The Front Seat? Here Are Montana’s Laws

It may seem like common sense to wait until kids are of a certain weight/age to let them ride in the front seat of a car, but there are actually laws about this as well.

We all want kids to be safe wherever they are. Recently, we discussed how old your kids have to be to leave them at home alone. If there are legal age limits for this, what else are there age limits for? For one, riding in the front seat.

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Montana law states that kids under the age of six and under sixty pounds have to be in the back seat and secured in a proper booster seat or safety seat. This, however, doesn't follow the safest practice guidelines; in reality, the child should be at least 8 years old and 4'9" before they ride in the back seat without a booster. This is based on how effective car safety mechanisms are in relation to their size/weight (one example is seatbelts).

An additional law states that children under the age of 13 should remain in the back seat, though a booster seat is not required. This is because airbags can't as effectively protect the child if they are in the front seat. So, back seat and booster seat until roughly 8 years old and 4'9", and back seat without booster until the age of 13.

It's interesting to read these laws because they aren't often stressed to children growing up; at least, when I was growing up, you sat in the backseat, and then one day, out of the blue, you could finally sit in the front seat. There was no mention of an age requirement. 

I think this is a good refresher when it comes to car safety. We never want to see the ones we love injured. Do you believe Montana should legally change the age requirement to reflect best safety practices?

For more details, check out Montana laws.