Cross Border Shopping Is Not the Best Deal
for Your Child’s Safety |
TP14563
Consumer Information Notice
Child Restraint Systems
2007-C09 E |
Cross border shopping may be cheap and convenient, but when it comes to
buying a child’s car seat or booster seat for use in Canada, Transport Canada
warns consumers that it is illegal.
Transport Canada is receiving a significantly increased number of inquiries
from parents and caregivers who have either purchased a seat, or are considering
purchasing a seat from outside of Canada. The Department is also seeing an
increase in the number of reports from Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA)
officers and from certified child passenger safety technicians that seats
purchased in other countries are being privately imported into Canada and are
showing up at car seat clinics across Canada.
Transport Canada is concerned that parents and caregivers may not know that
it is illegal to import and use in Canada a seat that does not comply with
Canadian standards. Many consumers are looking south of the border and in other
countries for the best buy without knowing all of the facts. Child seats and
booster seats sold in the U.S. and other countries do not meet Canadian federal
regulations and, under provincial and territorial legislations, are illegal to
use in Canada.
Child or booster seats purchased outside Canada, including those purchased
online from non-Canadian vendors, do not comply with Canada’s
Motor Vehicle
Restraint Systems and Booster Cushions Safety Regulations (RSSR) and the
applicable Canada Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (CMVSS), and thus do not carry
the National Safety Mark. Every country has its respective child seat standards.
Canadian regulations are rigorous and differ from those in other countries. For
example, U.S. certified booster seats allow for a lower weight limit than
Canadian standards.
The use of non-compliant child seats may not only jeopardize children’s
safety and pose a serious danger to the public, but it may also result in
repercussions such as:
- Confiscation of the seat at the border or after it has entered Canada;
- Fines and/or demerit point penalties;
- Reduced or voided insurance coverage for injury or death; and
- Possible criminal charges and/or civil litigation.
Additionally, if the seat is purchased outside of Canada and a recall notice
is issued, the parent or caregiver may not be informed of the recall or have
recourse against the manufacturer.
In summary, when purchasing a child seat for use in Canada, parents and
caregivers should look for the National Safety Mark label attached to the seat,
indicating that the seat complies with Canadian regulations and standards, and
is therefore legal for use in Canada. When shopping online for a child seat,
please ensure that the vendor is offering a seat that is certified to Canadian
standards and carries the National Safety Mark.
National Safety Mark
Transport Canada takes this opportunity to remind parents and caregivers to
always use a child seat appropriate for your child’s development, weight and
height, and to ensure that the child seat is used and installed correctly in the
vehicle in accordance with the child seat manufacturer’s instructions.
For more information about child seats and child passenger safety,
visit Transport Canada’s Child Safety Web page at
www.tc.gc.ca/roadsafety/childsafety/menu.htm, or call Transport Canada’s
Road Safety Information Centre at 1-800-333-0371 (toll-free in Canada).
Transport Canada: |
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1-800-333-0371 |
Release Date: |
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November 8, 2007 |
Note: This consumer information notice was developed in
collaboration with the BCAA Traffic Safety Foundation (TSF). To learn more about
BCAA Traffic Safety Foundation’s comprehensive Child Passenger Safety Program,
please visit their Web site at:
www.ChildSeatInfo.ca.
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