The 2024 Law on Road Traffic Order and Safety stipulates that when transporting children under 10 years old and less than 1.35m in height in a car, drivers must use or give instructions on the use of appropriate safety devices for children. 

A safety device is one that can ensure a child's safety in a sitting or lying position in a car. Violations are subject to fines ranging from VND800,000 to VND1,000,000. The regulation takes effect from January 1, 2026.

NA deputy Ha Sy Dong (Quang Tri) said that most developed countries already have similar regulations, which are considered to provide social benefits. However, in those countries, the car-use rate is very high and motorbikes are almost nonexistent, while in Vietnam the opposite is true.

He warned that if the child seat rule is applied too rigidly, many families may end up transporting children by motorbike instead of by car or taxi, exposing them to even higher accident risks. 

He proposed following the example of several other countries by exempting taxis and ride-hailing vehicles from the requirement.

According to Regulation 123:2024 of the Ministry of Transport (previous edition), child seats come in four to five sizes depending on the child’s weight. If taxis are required to equip child seats, each taxi would need at least four seats of different sizes. Dong said this would be “entirely infeasible.”

He added that taxis serve tourists and they often connect with other transport modes such as flights. If parents are required to bring child seats, they must carry them onto airplanes and throughout their trip. If taxi companies are required to provide child seats, they cannot meet the needs of families with two or more children.

Many families without private cars need taxis to take children to vaccinations, medical appointments, or to travel in bad weather. Since taxis with child seats would be limited, passengers would wait longer for a car, and drivers would incur longer empty trips, thus raising fares. 

These costs would fall on low-income families and young parents, even though the accident rate for taxis is lower than for private cars due to taxi’s more professional drivers.

This regulation presents a difficult challenge for ride-hailing and taxi drivers: how to balance safety and livelihood. This is because they serve a large volume of passengers, including children of all ages, weights, and heights. 

Therefore, buying a single child seat is insufficient, while buying many types of seats is not feasiblt in terms of both cost and space.

Nguyen Minh Tuan, a GrabCar driver with five years of experience, said: "We fully support protecting children. But this regulation genuinely makes things difficult for us."

Tuan shared that installing a child seat means losing a passenger position. But if it is removed and put in the trunk, there will be no space left for luggage.

Vu Van Thanh, a driver for Taxi 123, said: "There are up to four types of child car seats to suit different ages of children; must I buy all four types of seats to serve these customers? Standard-compliant seats are not cheap, ranging from a few million to tens of millions of VND. My current income is already precarious, and now with this significant extra cost, I am truly under great pressure."

The anxiety of Tuan and Thanh is the general sentiment shared by the majority of service drivers. Many drivers worry they will face a "dilemma": refusing to carry customers with children will violate company regulations, lead to low ratings, and cause loss of income. But if they carry children without the required safety restraints, they will be fined.

"We really hope that ride-hailing companies will soon have a policy to support drivers, or launch a dedicated family car service for customers accompanied by children with a higher fare to offset the costs," Tuan proposed.

Other ride-hailing apps like Xanh SM, Be, and even traditional taxi companies like Mai Linh, VinaSun, G7 Taxi, and CP currently do not have official instructions regarding child passengers.

Grab in Singapore has launched a service with available child safety seats called "GrabFamily," with a fare about SGD5 (approximately $3.85) higher per trip than regular GrabCar. Despite the more expensive fare, customers are willing to pay for safety and legal compliance.

Malaysia has mandated the use of child safety seats in cars since 2020. Initially, this regulation met fierce opposition from ride-hailing drivers. Currently, the Malaysian Government is temporarily exempting taxis and ride-hailing vehicles but is still promoting communication and providing drivers with a roadmap for adaptation.

Vu Diep