Apparently, I'm not. I thought it was 12. Did it recently change? My 13 year old has been in front since she was 12. She's now 5'5" and 113 lbs., so I guess it's ok.

I have let my kids at 10 they meet the height and weight.

I let my 12 yo DS (5'5''/ 105 lbs), but I thought the cut off was 12. 11 yo DD (4'6''/65 lbs) may be 16 before she gets there.

I do not allow children other than my own to ride in the front seat without explicit parental permission. This appears to be fairly standard practice, as I get asked occasionally if it's ok for my youngest to ride in the front seat when she's with a group of smaller friends.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was 5'3" at 12 and wore a 8.5 shoe. How can that be too small for an airbag?

Sounds like you were big enough. The guidance is at least 5' tall and I forget if there's a weight minimum. I sat in the front seat in the 80s, as did my brother, but neither of us would qualify today.

Age is a requirement too because of bone density, that's why the minimum is 13 years despite height and weight.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was 5'3" at 12 and wore a 8.5 shoe. How can that be too small for an airbag?

Sounds like you were big enough. The guidance is at least 5' tall and I forget if there's a weight minimum. I sat in the front seat in the 80s, as did my brother, but neither of us would qualify today.

I think the weight minimum for airbags is 90lbs.

According to the interwebs "Maryland's child passenger safety laws do not prohibit children from riding in the front seat. The exception is placing a rear-facing child in the front seat with an active air bag. If a driver is unable to turn off an air bag, it is a violation of law (as well as a terrible danger to the baby!) to place a rear-facing child in the front seat. **Please note: KISS and other child passenger safety experts strongly recommended all children under age 13 ride in the back seat. Research conducted and published in a report by Partners for Child Passenger Safety clearly shows that children are 40% less likely to be seriously injured when properly restrained in the back seat."

Anonymous wrote:I was 5'3" at 12 and wore a 8.5 shoe. How can that be too small for an airbag?

My 12-year-old is 4'10", maybe 70 pounds, and wears a size 5 (women's) shoes. She is too small for an airbag.

Anonymous wrote:I was 5'3" at 12 and wore a 8.5 shoe. How can that be too small for an airbag?

Sounds like you were big enough. The guidance is at least 5' tall and I forget if there's a weight minimum. I sat in the front seat in the 80s, as did my brother, but neither of us would qualify today.

I was 5'3" at 12 and wore a 8.5 shoe. How can that be too small for an airbag?

Anonymous wrote:Is this really a law? Jeez. I started riding in the front seat at 5/6, from what I remember

Unless you're younger than 20, there weren't airbags when you were 5/6 and riding in the front seat.

Is this really a law? Jeez. I started riding in the front seat at 5/6, from what I remember

Is the 12 year old also the biggest? If so I'd check with their parent for the green light.

I am not a big fan of black-and-white rules for this kind of thing -- so I wouldn't let my 12-year-old ride in the front seat habitually, but once in a while would be fine.

If it's someone else's kid, I'd either check with their parents to make sure it's OK, or put my oldest child in the front seat and have all their kids in the back.

I've started letting my 12 year old ride in the front seat. He's weighs over 100 lbs and is pretty tall. So, the airbag sensor doesn't automatically turn off when he's sitting there.

DH needs to drive 4 kids all under age 13. Oldest is 12 but not our child...