Rearward-Facing to Big Kid Boosters: What Every Parent Should Know
From 21–27 September, Maxi-Cosi proudly sponsors Child Passenger Safety Week: “Your Click. Their Tomorrow.” That click when you buckle your child in isn’t just a sound - it’s peace of mind, whether it’s their first ride home or the daily school run.
For over 20 years, Maxi-Cosi has helped parents travel confidently with:
- ISOFIX bases for quick, secure installation
- Patented G-Cell technology to absorb side impacts
- AirProtect® headrests that reduce head injury risk by up to 20%
This month, we’re reminding parents that the right seat, used the right way, makes all the difference.
What is i-Size?
Car seat rules can be confusing, so Europe introduced i-Size (UN R129) to make things simpler and safer for parents. Instead of relying on age or weight, i-Size uses your child’s height to help you choose the right seat, something every parent can measure easily.
Why i-Size matters
- Rearward-facing travel is required until at least 15 months.
- Height-based fit means less guesswork and a safer match for your child.
- Stricter safety tests, including better side-impact protection.
With i-Size, you know your car seat has been designed and tested to meet the latest safety standards.
What is ADAC?
ADAC is one of Europe’s most trusted independent testing organisations for child car seats. Think of it as an extra layer of reassurance for parents, because ADAC goes beyond the basics and checks how seats perform in real-world conditions.
ADAC tests cover:
- Crash safety
- Ease of use (how simple the seat is to install and secure)
- Comfort and ergonomics for your child
- Testing for harmful chemicals
- Ease of cleaning (because life with kids is messy!)
If a car seat earns a strong ADAC rating, it means it’s passed some of the toughest safety checks around. Take a look at a few of our top-rated ADAC seats.
Why rearward-facing is safest for little ones
In a crash, children who are forward-facing can be thrown forward. For babies and toddlers, this puts huge pressure on their delicate necks and spines, which are still developing.
Rearward-facing seats work differently: they act like a protective cocoon, spreading the impact forces across the whole back, head and neck. In head-on (frontal) and multi-vehicle collisions - the most common and often most severe accidents, making up around 60% of crashes - a forward-facing child is thrown forward, putting tremendous strain on the neck and spine.
Our rearward-facing infant car seats, like our Pebble 360 Pro, work seamlessly with our ISOFIX bases for ultimate safety.
Research shows that children are up to five times safer travelling rearward-facing compared to forward-facing. That’s why many countries, like Sweden, recommend keeping children rearward-facing until at least four years old and why they consistently have some of the lowest child road fatality rates in the world.
In short, rearward-facing is the safest start you can give your child.
- Head & Neck Support: Babies’ heads are heavy and necks are weak; rear-facing stops dangerous forward jolts.
- Crash Dynamics: In frontal crashes, the seat cradles the child and spreads forces safely.
- Spinal Protection: Toddlers are up to 5x safer rear-facing until at least 15 months, ideally up to 4 years.
- Proven Practice: Sweden has kept kids rear-facing until 4 for decades, with the world’s lowest child road fatality rates.
How long should my child stay rearward-facing?
The current i-Size regulation requires children to travel rearward-facing until at least 15 months old. But experts agree: the longer, the better. Ideally, children should travel rear-facing until about four years old.
Some Maxi-Cosi seats, like the Pearl 360 Pro and Mica 360 Pro, are designed to keep little ones safely rearward-facing up to four years old, giving parents that extra peace of mind.
Every month you keep them rearward-facing, you’re giving their growing body more protection.
Why bigger kids still need a booster seat
Once children outgrow toddler seats, many parents think the job is done, but boosters are still essential until around 10–12 years old, or until your child reaches 150 cm in height.
Why? Because seat belts are made for adults.
Without a booster:
- The lap belt often rides up over the tummy instead of sitting low across the hips.
- The shoulder belt can press against the neck instead of lying safely across the chest.
- This poor fit can lead to serious injuries in a crash.
A booster seat raises your child up so the belt fits exactly where it should, snug across the shoulder and low on the hips. Studies show that boosters reduce the risk of injury by up to 59% compared with seat belts alone.
Think of it as giving your child the right-sized protection for their growing body. Explore our booster range and our new Emerald 360 Pro that is the only car seat featuring SlideTech® that your child can use from birth until they no longer need one - that’s a full 12 years of life.
When can my child stop using a booster?
The golden rule: it’s not about age, it’s about height and fit. Your child is ready to travel without a booster when they’re tall enough (around 150 cm) for the seat belt to fit them properly:
- The lap belt lies flat across the hips (not the stomach).
- The shoulder belt rests comfortably across the chest and shoulder (not the neck).
For most children, this happens somewhere between ages 10 and 12. Until then, boosters are the best way to keep them safe.
The Maxi-Cosi Promise
At Maxi-Cosi, safety is at the heart of everything we do. From our extended rearward-facing car seats to our ergonomically designed boosters, every product is engineered to protect children at every stage of their journey.
This Child Passenger Safety Week, we want to remind parents, caregivers, and road users: Every buckle. Every strap. Every click. It matters.
Because one simple action today - “Your Click” - can shape “Their Tomorrow.”