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Is my child's car seat fitted right? Find a car seat fitter in WA

RoadWise lists trained Type 1 child car seat fitters across WA who install and check your child's car seat, plus a free advice line on 1300 780 713.

A car seat fitter checks a rear-facing baby seat through the back door of a family car while a parent holds their baby and watches

A car seat only protects your child if it is fitted right and adjusted to fit them. Straps twist, tethers loosen, and children grow faster than we move the harness. Most of us fitted ours once, from the instructions, and hoped.

In Western Australia you don't have to guess. WALGA's RoadWise program keeps a map of trained fitters who will install your child's seat or check the one you already have.

Find a car seat fitter near you

What a fitter does

RoadWise trains and supports a network of Type 1 Child Car Restraint Fitters across WA. They install and inspect child car seats, and give advice for your car and your child.

Some come to you, some work from a fixed place, and some do both. Each fitter works independently and sets their own hours, area and fees. Depending on who you book, the service may be free or paid, so ask about the cost when you call.

You don't legally need a fitter in WA. RoadWise recommends one anyway, so the seat is installed and adjusted correctly.

When to book one

Which seat, at which age

RoadWise's quick guide for WA:

  1. Birth to 6 months: rearward-facing, in a capsule or a rearward-facing convertible seat.
  2. 6 months to 4 years: rearward-facing, or forward-facing with an inbuilt harness.
  3. 4 to 7 years: forward-facing with an inbuilt harness, or a booster seat with a lap-sash seatbelt or a child safety harness.

Keep your child rearward-facing until they reach the seat's upper rearward-facing limits, not just until 6 months. Some seats now stay rearward-facing to about 30 months. Move up a stage only when your child has outgrown the seat they're in, going by the seat's shoulder height markers, not age alone.

The back seat is the safest place. If the seat fits properly there, the centre rear gives extra distance from a side crash.

Before you use a second-hand seat

RoadWise's checks:

Check for recalls too, on the ACCC's Product Safety Australia site.

Older car with no anchor point?

Some older sedans, wagons, work vehicles and 4WDs have no anchor point for the top tether. Added anchor points must be fitted by a Type 2 Child Restraint Fitting Station, or checked by one or by an Authorised Inspection Station. The Department of Transport lists the stations.

How to book

  1. Open the RoadWise Find a Fitter map and search your suburb or town.
  2. Choose a mobile fitter (they come to you), an on-site fitter (you go to them), or one who does both.
  3. Call or email them. Tell them your child's age and height, the seat, and the car.
  4. Ask what it costs and how long it takes.
  5. Bring the seat's instructions and your car's owner's manual if you have them.

Questions first? The RoadWise Child Car Seat Safety team takes calls on 1300 780 713, 9am to 4pm Monday to Friday (WA time).

Find a car seat fitter near you

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