The Manitoba Driver, from Manitoba Public Insurance
February 2008

About 330 words
Child car seats: keep them off your cross-border shopping list

The strong Canadian dollar may be luring cross-border shoppers to the States, but returning home with a new child car seat may not be a bargain at all.

Child or booster seats purchased in the U. S., or anywhere outside Canada, may not comply with Transport Canada’s Motor Vehicle Restraint Systems and Booster Cushions Safety Regulations.

Every country has its own child car seat regulations, but Canadian standards are stricter than other countries. For example, a booster seat approved in the U.S. may have a lower weight limit than one that would meet the Canadian standard.

These standards ensure that the movement of the child will be limited in a collision or sudden stop. They also set safe levels for strength, flammability, padding thickness and requirements for installation instructions.

If you want to make sure your child or booster seat meets the Canadian standard, simply look for the National Safety Mark sticker on the seat or base.

It’s against the law to use a car seat that doesn’t meet Canadian standards. In Manitoba, it can result in fines or even confiscation of the seat at the border or after it has been brought across the border.

And that’s not the only downside. “If a recall notice is issued on a child car seat for safety reasons, you may not hear about it,” says Shauna Neiser, Manitoba Child Car Seat Program Coordinator for Manitoba Public Insurance. “It’s just not worth the risk.”

Remember, if you’re buying a child seat to use in Canada, look for the National Safety Mark label attached to the seat – it’s the only way to be sure it complies with Canadian regulations. The same rule applies to online shopping – make sure the seat is certified to Canadian standards and carries the National Safety Mark.

For more information about child car seats, contact Manitoba Public Insurance at 1-800-767-7640 (outside Winnipeg) or 985-7199 (in Winnipeg). You can also visit the website: www.mpi.mb.ca.

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© 2008 Manitoba Public Insurance

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A National Safety Mark sticker should appear on an approved child car seat. Note: the label will have other alpha-numeric information instead of the xx's and yy's.