Petition · past parliament · Department for Transport
Make it a legal requirement to rear-face until minimum aged 4
Closed
738 signatures
What the petition asks
The Government should raise the minimum age for forward-facing in height-based car seats from 15 months to 4 years old. The current guidelines for height-based seats say that children must be rear-facing until they are over 15 months old.
There are concerns that small children's necks are not developed enough to protect the spinal cord, potentially risking severe injury from forward-facing seats.
When forward-facing in a crash, some research suggests that children’s heads are subjected to stress loads of 180 to 300kg. When rear-facing they are subjected to only 40 to 80kg which is a huge difference.
This research suggests that rear-facing lowers the risk of death or serious injury to 8%. It should be illegal to forward face before the age of 4 unless under certain circumstances, such as a disability.
When forward-facing in a crash, some research suggests that children’s heads are subjected to stress loads of 180 to 300kg. When rear-facing they are subjected to only 40 to 80kg which is a huge difference.
This research suggests that rear-facing lowers the risk of death or serious injury to 8%. It should be illegal to forward face before the age of 4 unless under certain circumstances, such as a disability.
Timeline
| 6 Jan 2022 | Petition opened for signatures |
| 6 Jul 2022 | Closed to new signatures |
Key facts
Signatures
738
Status
Closed
Department
Department for Transport
Opened
6 Jan 2022
Closed
6 Jul 2022
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Source: the official petition page. Last checked 15 Jul 2026.