CAR SEATS
Why should I use a car seat?
• A car seat may save your child’s life. Improper restraint poses the greatest risk for death among children riding in motor vehicles.
• Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death among children 4 to 14 years old.
• In 2000, more than half of all children younger than 15 years killed in motor vehicle crashes were completely unrestrained.
• If you are traveling at 30 miles/hour, and are involved in a motor vehicle crash, a 10 lb. baby would be pulled from your arms with an accelerated force of almost 300 lbs. and be thrown into the dashboard or windshield.
It is not an option; it's the law.
All children younger than 6 years or under 60 lbs. must be properly restrained in a correctly installed car seat in the back seat of the car. Breaking this law can result in a fine of more than $100 per child.
• A booster seat may be used for children who weigh 40 to 60 lbs. It is recommended that a booster seat be used until a child is 4 feet 9 inches tall.
• All children younger than 1 year and under 20 lbs. must be in a correctly installed car seat facing the rear of the car.
• Infants should remain rear-facing for as long as possible. Infants who weigh 20 pounds before 1 year of age must ride rearfacing in a convertible seat. A child should remain rear-facing until reaching the rear facing weight limit of the convertible seat. At that time the child should be turned to the forward-facing position.
• Make sure the carrying handle is down when placing an infant seat into the car. When should I use a car seat?
• Always. No trip is too short. Most motor vehicle crashes happen within 25 miles of home. Use a car seat every time on every trip in any car.
• Make sure your friends, relatives, and childcare provider have a correctly installed car seat they use every time your child is in their car.
Remember:
Never place any rear-facing child seat in front of an airbag.
All children age 12 or younger should be properly restrained in the back seat.
Test to determine if your child is ready to use an adult seat belt:
5 step seatbelt test:
• Does the child sit upright with hips all the way back against the vehicle’s seat back?
• Do the child’s knees bend comfortably at the edge of the vehicle’s seat?
• Is the lap belt below the abdomen, on the top part of the thighs, and snug across the hips?
• Is the shoulder belt centered over the shoulder and across the chest?
• Can the child stay seated in this position for the whole trip?
If you answered "No" to any of these questions, your child needs a booster seat to ride safely in the car. Children age 4-7 who use booster seats are 59 percent less likely to be injured in a crash than children restrained by a seat belt alone.
Source: www.carseat.org
Is your child riding at risk?
The use of child safety seats reduces the likelihood of fatality by an estimated 71 percent for infants and 54 percent for toddlers. Child safety seats reduce the need for hospitalization by 69 percent.
The risk of fatality is close to 40 percent lower for children seated in the back seat than for those riding in the front.
However, the percentage of children riding in the front seat remains high:
Infants: 15%
1-3: 10%
4-7: 29%
National studies reveal that 80 to 90 percent of children are not properly restrained and many local car seat check points report that 95 percent of car seats are installed incorrectly.
For a car seat technician or car seat check up location in
your area, call 1-800-441-1888 or 1-866-732-8243.
You may also find this information at www.nhtsa.dot.gov
or www.safekidsworldwide.org
Car seats are not cribs nor baby sitters: Never leave an unattended child in a car seat!
* Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
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