Safety Standard for Booster Seats

Section 104(b)(1) of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 requires the CPSC to promulgate rulemaking for durable infant or toddler products. Implementing that Congressional instruction, CPSC published in the

Federal Register

(

83 FR 30837

) a final rule codifies the regulation for booster seats at

16 C.F.R. part 1237

and incorporates by reference

ASTM F2640

, with any modifications by CPSC.

16 C.F.R. § 1237.2

identifies the latest Commission-accepted version of ASTM F2640 that is mandatory as well as any modifications. See the “

Previous Versions of the Standard

” section below for effective dates.

A “booster seat” is a juvenile chair, which is placed on an adult chair to elevate a child to standard dining table height. The booster seat is made for the purpose of containing a child, up to 5 years of age, and normally for the purposes of feeding or eating. A booster seat may be height adjustable and include a reclined position.

The requirements for booster seats are as follows:

General requirements

Hazardous sharp points and edges – see also 16 C.F.R. §§

1500.3(b)(4)(i)(D)

and

1500.3(b)(15)(i)(A)

Small parts – see also our

small parts business guidance page

Wood parts

Paint – see also our

lead in paint business guidance page

Scissoring, shearing, and pinching

Openings

Exposed coil springs

Protective components

Labeling

Toys - any toy accessories must meet the applicable requirements for

children's toys

Performance requirements

Tray performance (drop)

Tray performance (pull)

Static load

Child restraint system

Booster seat attachment

Structural integrity

Booster seats supported by backrest

Maximum booster seat dimensions

Read-only copies of ASTM standards that are incorporated by reference can be viewed at

ASTM’s electronic Reading Room

.

Labeling

Per

16 C.F.R

able requirements for

children's toys

Performance requirements

Tray performance (drop)

Tray performance (pull)

Static load

Child restraint system

Booster seat attachment

Structural integrity

Booster seats supported by backrest

Maximum booster seat dimensions

Read-only copies of ASTM standards that are incorporated by reference can be viewed at

ASTM’s electronic Reading Room

.

Labeling

Per

16 C.F.R. § 1130.4

, the following information must be permanently affixed to durable infant or toddler products in English:

Name of manufacturer or importer

Contact information (must include US address and phone number, toll-free if available)

Model name/number

Product identification number may be used as an identifying feature instead

Date of manufacture

Date must be at least month and year, and it can be stated in code form

This labeling requirement is in addition to the

tracking label requirement

for children’s products.

This page

summarizes the labeling requirements for durable infant or toddler products.

Registration Form

Product registration forms are required for all durable infant and toddler products to enable the manufacturer or retailer of the product to contact consumers with recall or other safety information. For more information, visit our

registration forms business guidance page

.

Previous Version of the Standard

15 U.S.C. § 2056a(b)(4)(B)

requires the CPSC to evaluate any updates to an incorporated ASTM standard for durable infant or toddler products to determine whether the revised standard improves the safety of the product. Firms must ensure that the product is tested to the Commission-accepted version of ASTM F2640 depending on its date of manufacture:

Manufactured after...

Must meet..

of the Standard

15 U.S.C. § 2056a(b)(4)(B)

requires the CPSC to evaluate any updates to an incorporated ASTM standard for durable infant or toddler products to determine whether the revised standard improves the safety of the product. Firms must ensure that the product is tested to the Commission-accepted version of ASTM F2640 depending on its date of manufacture:

Manufactured after...

Must meet...

January 2, 2020

ASTM F2640-18

Certification

Section 14(a) of the

Consumer Product Safety Act (CPSA)

requires manufacturers and importers of children’s products subject to a regulation, standard, or ban enforced by the CPSC to certify that those products meet the requirements of the standard by issuing a Children’s Product Certificate (CPC). For booster seats, the citation to use in section 2 of the CPC is “16 CFR part 1237 — Booster seats”.

For more information on certification, visit our

CPC business guidance page

.

Additional Information

Booster seats FAQs

Durable infant or toddler product business guidance page

Registration forms business guidance page

Contact

For more information, please contact the Small Business Ombudsman (SBO) team:

SBO contact form