Car seats in taxis

Hi there, we are temporarily relocating to Taiwan from the U.S. with our 2 and 5 yr olds. From online searches, it’s looks like Taiwan car seat rules are similar to the U.S.

My question is: will we able to adhere to proper car seat usage in taxis? Do current taxis have the appropriate locking seat belts and top tether latches?

I am not willing to have my children travel in cars without being restrained in the appropriate car seats. Are there any other options besides quarantine taxis—for example is there a way to hire a private car service to ensure safe car seat use?

I’m pretty sure in most countries taxis are considered public transport, and the car seat rules are pretty much “it’s up to you”. Is it different in the US?

Well, first step is to hope that you get a taxi which actually has seatbelts on the back seats…

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No, it is not different in the U.S. Taxis here are exempt from car seats laws.

Yes, so that is why I asked the question. In the U.S., all cars have a minimum of safety requirements, including the presence of seat belts. I did not know if that was the case in Taiwan.

most taxis are newer models and have seat belts in the back. the most common models are Toyota: Wish, or Camry.
if you have a car seat it’s not a problem to install one in the taxi, but dont expect the taxi to have one for you…
Uber has some cars with their own car seats, you can ask for them, but the waiting time might be longer.

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Thank you! This is very helpful!

no worries, ive done it myself many times in the past , the biggest problem I encountered was a grumpy look from the driver cuz it takes long to put the seat in , but other than that you should be fine. if the car is old or the driver too grumpy to your liking there are many other taxis to choose from.

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Sounds like the OP is concerned about the trip from the airport to quarantine on arrival in Taiwan, if that’s the case there won’t be much of a choice.

For the 5 year old perhaps bring a simple booster seat or portable child seat .

When ours was 2 we used an Ergo baby and belted ourselves in, it’s a little awkward and you need to make sure the adults belts around themselves rather than around the child as well, still easier than lugging around a car seat.

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there are many taxi companies , but you can try checking this one 55688

You can download the App and check the taxi with seats for children

These are some rules about Car seats for children in vehicles

  • Children under 1 year old or weighing less than 10 kg, they should be placed in a bed or rear-facing seat for infants in the back seat of the car
  • If children are over 1 to under 4 years old and weigh above 10 kg but below 18 kg should sit in a child seat in the back seat of the vehicle.

the driver could be fined from NT$1,500 to NT$3,000 in accordance with Article 31 of the current road traffic penalty management regulations.

https://money.udn.com/money/story/6710/4349293

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They have an English app too.

It’s like Uber for taxi.
You can make a reservation, estimate fee and pay all on the app.
Just make sure to select the option “Baby seat” under “Choose service” when making your reservation.

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Thanks!

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Wonderful—just downloaded the app. Thank you for sharing!

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There are only a few jurisdictions in the US that exempt taxis from carseat rules. NYC is one. California, on the other hand, does not.

We did not have an issue to/from the airport, but it may have just been luck.

Thanks—it sounds like it might involve a little bit of luck. But as long as it’s a possibility, I don’t mind waiting.

I realized I should specify that my statement refers to last year, pre-pandemic and quarantine. That attaching our car seats in our taxis was no problem.

So, we have 4 kids, and the youngest just turned 1. It would really be convenient to be able to call UberXL vehicles so the 6 of us could all ride together in one car. So, two questions:

  1. Is a car seat is required for our youngest in private vehicles (e.g. Uber)?
  2. Do taxis require car seats? Assuming not, is there a way to call a taxi that can seat 6 people?

The law in Taiwan explicitly states that children under the age of 4 must be secured in child safety seats whenever riding in a motor vehicle.

Enforcement is lacking same as all other traffic rules.

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Maybe Yoxi - new taxi company. Newer, so sometimes the availability is pretty low outside of popular places, but they’re essentially all brand new Toyotas, mostly hybrids. It’s actually owned by Toyota. No idea about seats, but there’s a chance it’s way better.