Hilary Duff is catching backlash after her 3-year-old daughter, Banks, was spotted in an Instagram video without a car seat.
The actress sparked a viral debate on social media after her “Younger” co-star Molly Bernard shared a video of the toddler sitting with her in the back seat of a moving car while adorably quoting a line from the TV show “RuPaul’s Drag Race.”
However, it didn’t take long before people took to the comments to note that there was a safety concern at play in the video as many believe that the child should be in a car seat given that her size doesn’t allow her to be fully strapped into an average-sized seatbelt.
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Hilary Duff’s husband, Matthew Koma, responded to critics of a video of their daughter outside of a car seat. (Michael Kovac/Getty Images for Adopt Together)
According to the law in California, where Duff lives, children under the age of 2 need to be strapped into a rear-facing car seat unless they weigh more than 40 pounds or are more than 40 inches tall. Although Banks is 3, the law also states that children under the age of 8 who are shorter than 4’9″ need to be in a booster seat or fully secured by a seatbelt.
Duff has not spoken on the situation publicly and did not respond to Fox News’ request for comment.
However, the “Lizzie McGuire” star’s husband and Banks’ father, producer Matthew Koma, took to the comments of the post himself to sarcastically clap back at those clutching their pearls over the video.
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“You are truly a hero for speaking up,” he responded to one user (via E! News).
Hilary Duff’s daughter was spotted in a video not using a car seat. (Photo by James Devaney/GC Images)
He fired back at another critic, writing: “You’re the kind of person who cuts up a kid’s Apple sauce, hey?”
In addition to Banks, Duff is also the mother to their 9-month-old daughter, Mae, as well as 9-year-old son Luca, whom she shares with her ex-husband Mike Comrie.
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This isn’t the first time that Duff has courted controversy for her parenting on social media. In December, she took to Instagram to unabashedly share that she had her young baby’s ears pierced.
Hilary Duff’s previously sparked controversy for piercing her baby’s ears. (Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)
“Yes! I pierced her ears today,” Duff posted on Instagram Stories. “Can’t wait for the internet to call me a child abuser….again.”
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Duff also got some flack in 2019 after sharing a photo of her first daughter, who was 8 months at the time, wearing earrings.
