(Some parents will no longer be able to transfer their kids from a car seat to just a seatbelt)

A woman from Steinbach says she welcomes new legislation regarding the use of booster seats.

Earlier this month, the province announced children are now required to remain in a booster seat until they are at least 4'9" tall and weigh 80 pounds or reach 9 years of age. Prior to now, the Highway Traffic Act required child car seats to be used until a child reached the age of 5 or a weight of 50 pounds.

Cindi Klassen-Krahn is a car seat technician in Steinbach and also serves on the local Fire Department. She says these new regulations are intended for children aged four to nine and it's because they're being transitioned too quickly from a five point harness into a booster seat.

"I think this is excellent because today's vehicles, the vehicle seats are made wider and deeper," notes Klassen-Krahn. "So often the seatbelt doesn't sit across the frame of their body." She says the lap belt is supposed to come across the hips and the sternum, while the shoulder strap must come across the collarbone.

Klassen-Krahn says sometimes the seatbelt comes across a child's stomach and neck and then parents place the shoulder strap behind the child. She says that can be dangerous in event of a collision. "A body in motion stays in motion," notes Klassen-Krahn. "When you come to an abrupt stop the seatbelts will have an emergency locking mechanism and then that can cause injury to internal organs and/or severe whiplash, if the shoulder strap isn't on." She says the most common injury she's seen is a sore chest plate.

"This new legislation is a good thing," she says. "It's good for the safety of the children."

Klassen-Krahn says she knows there will be parents that will buck the new legislation. "Unfortunately if they choose to go that route, if you are caught it will be the same fine as an adult without a seatbelt on, $292.65." She adds a booster cushion seat can cost between $25-45 with a shelf life between seven and ten years.

The car seat technician says she often does one-on-ones with parents to explain the do's and the don'ts. She is working on running a clinic towards the end of September.