Children should remain in a forward facing car seat until the are approximately 40 pounds and 4 years old. Some children are over 4 years old, but still don’t weigh 40 pounds. These children should still ride in a car seat with a 5 point harness.

On the majority of car seats, the harness straps will only hold your child up to 40 pounds. There are some car seats that have weight limits of 65 pounds. Read the instructions to determine the weight limit of your car seat.

Signs that your child has outgrown the seat: Ears are above the car seat back or their shoulders are above the top harness slots. Once your child reaches the maximum weight or height limit and has outgrown the car seat, your child will need to graduate to the next stage of child passenger safety.

Contact a Certified Child Passenger Safety Technician is you think your child has outgrown his car seat.