A mother leaning into a car to check her child is buckled into a rear child safety seat

Guide: Child seats

Florida car seat law in hired cars, in plain English

Florida’s child restraint statute has an exemption for chauffeur-driven hired vehicles that surprises a lot of parents. What the law says, what it does not, and what the safety experts recommend. This is a summary, not legal advice.

Child seats, meet and greet, tolls and airport fees are in the price

A driver helping an older couple step into a black minivan — Easy steps for grandparents.

The general rule

Section 316.613 of the Florida Statutes says that anyone driving a child aged five or younger must protect the child with a crash-tested, federally approved child restraint device.

Up to and including age 3: either a standalone carrier or a seat the carmaker built into the vehicle.
Ages 4 and 5: a separate carrier, a built-in child seat, or a child booster seat.

The rule for four- and five-year-olds is relatively recent: a 2014 law extended the requirement to that age group from January 1, 2015. A violation is a moving violation carrying three points on the driver’s licence.

Seat stages at a glance

Up to age 3A carrier or a built-in child seatFlorida law
Ages 4 and 5Carrier, built-in seat or boosterFlorida law
Until the belt fitsBooster, often to 4 ft 9 in, ages 8–12Advice
Under 13Ride in the back seatAdvice

Law: Florida Statutes 316.613. Advice: NHTSA and the American Academy of Pediatrics. Not legal advice.

Two young children belted into the back seat of a car, laughing together — Older children ride belted in the back seat.

A driver standing by a black SUV as a family with suitcases walks into a resort entrance with a fountain — Arriving at the resort.

The hired-vehicle exemption, subsection (6)

Subsection (6) reads: the child restraint requirements “do not apply to a chauffeur-driven taxi, limousine, sedan, van, bus, motor coach, or other passenger vehicle if the operator and the motor vehicle are hired and used for the transportation of persons for compensation.”

The very next sentence puts the duty elsewhere: “It is the obligation and responsibility of the parent, guardian, or other person responsible for a child’s welfare” to comply with the section.

Parents and two small children packing bags and a cooler into the open tailgate of a car — Bring the seats or book them with the car: either way, the parent decides.

Read together, the two sentences mean the driver of a hired car is not the person the law holds responsible; the parent is. That is why we provide child seats, included in the price, rather than leaving parents to carry their own through the airport.

How the exemption applies to app-based ride-share services is a separate question that this guide does not try to answer.

Florida Statutes 316.613(6)Hired, chauffeur-driven vehicles are exemptThe same subsection places the duty to comply on the parent or guardian. Summary only, not legal advice.

A family with a pool float and bags stepping out of a black Sprinter van at a resort with water slides behind — Pool day, the whole family in one van.

What this means when you book a car

Share every child’s age and current seat, plus weight and height for any child near a seat’s limit. Seats are included in the price. More on that on our car service with car seats page.

This guide is a plain-language summary for travellers. It is not legal advice; read the statute itself at the link below.

When you bookEach child’s age and seat typePlus weight and height near a seat’s limit. Seats are included in the price.

A family loading suitcases into a black Sprinter van outside a resort hotel, the driver helping — Two families, one van.

Questions travellers ask

Do taxis and limos in Florida need car seats?

Subsection (6) of statute 316.613 exempts chauffeur-driven vehicles hired for pay from the restraint requirements, while placing the duty to comply on the parent or guardian. This is not legal advice.

What car seat does a 3-year-old need in Florida?

Up to and including age 3, the statute calls for a standalone carrier or a seat built in by the carmaker.

Can a 5-year-old use a booster seat in Florida?

Yes. For ages 4 and 5, the statute allows a separate carrier, a built-in child seat or a booster seat.

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