Parents warned they could be fined £500 while driving with children

Parents and other caregivers have been warned they could be hit with £500 fines if they don't adhere to certain rules while driving with children in the car. Consumer champion site Which? has posted a video on its Instagram feed, in which researcher Hannah Fox has shared the child car seat laws "you need to know".

In the clip, Hannah explains that car seats should conform to either R129 or R44 regulations, and this information can be found on the seat's label. It should also be suitable, as you'd expect, for your child's height or weight.

Hannah adds: "For R129 seats, your child needs to sit rearward-facing until they're at least 15 months old, at which point they are allowed to turn forward-facing. But extended rearward-facing car seats, which keep your child facing backwards until around the age of four, are a much better option."

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This is because crash tests have shown they will "keep them much safer in a collision", according to Hannah. Either way, children need to be in car seats, with the exception to this rule being if it's while in a licensed taxi or mini-cab.

Hannah continues: "From a child's third birthday until they reach 135cm tall, or 12 years old - whichever comes first - they can sit in the front if using a car seat." And if there's no room for a third child seat in the back of your vehicle, the child can sit in the middle using an adult seatbelt, provided they are at least three years old.

According to Gov.uk advice, if the correct child car seat isn’t available, a child aged three or older can use an adult seat belt if the journey is all of the following

• unexpected

• necessary

• over a short distance

You can’t take children under 3 on an unexpected journey in a vehicle without the correct child car seat, unless both of the following apply:

• it’s a licensed taxi or minicab

• the child travels on a rear seat without a seat belt

If you don't adhere to car seat laws, you can be fined up to £500.