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Child Safety Seats: Tips For Keeping Your Child Safe

According to The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA), over 1,700 children are killed and over 300,000 are injured in traffic accidents each year. Many of these tragedies could have been prevented with the use of child safety seats. Child safety seats help distribute the force of the impact over the child’s body and help keep the child safely in place. When used correctly, car seats can help reduce the risk of death for infants by 71% and by 54% for toddlers. Unfortunately, government statistics estimate that between 80% and 90% of all car seats are used incorrectly.

In 1995, NHTSA conducted a study in four states, including Pennsylvania, and found that the most common car seat errors involved the improper usage of the locking clip, the harness strap or the harness retainer clip. NHTSA discovered that nearly 17% of the time, seat belts were incorrectly connected to the car seat and the seat itself wasn’t positioned properly. The results also showed that many parents used seat belts instead of a car seat, before their children were big enough to properly use them.

In Pennsylvania all children ages 4 and under must be seated in a car seat. Failure to do so is punishable by fines.

There are four types of car seats – infant seats, convertible seats, toddler seats and booster seats. To determine which type of car seat to use, parents should consider the child’s height and weight.

• Infant seats and convertible seats in the infant position – Infant seats are used from birth to about 1 year of age. These seats are for children who cannot sit-up unassisted and who weigh less then 20 pounds. Infant seats should be placed in the back seat, in a semi-reclined position facing the rear seat. They should never be placed in the front seat of a car.
  
• Toddler seats and convertible seats in the forward facing position – These seats should be used for children who weigh between 20 and 40 pounds and who can sit unassisted. These seats should also be placed in the center of the back seat of the car, which is the safest place for a child.
  
• Booster seats – Booster seats are used when the child has outgrown his or her toddler seat, but is not yet tall enough to properly use the car’s seat belts. These seats help elevate the child so that the lap and shoulder belts are positioned correctly (incorrect positioning of the lap belt can cause serious intestinal or spinal cord injuries and the incorrect positioning of the shoulder belt can cause neck and shoulder injuries).

Child safety groups suggest that the child move out of a car seat and into seat belts only when he or she is over 80 pounds and is at least 57 inches tall (usually around age 8).

So, what can parents do to help ensure the car seat is used correctly?

To help prevent injuries parents should carefully read all directions and warnings in the child safety seat’s instruction manual, as well as the section on car seats in your vehicle owner’s manual. Before purchasing a seat, be sure to check your owner’s manual or contact your auto dealer to see which brands of car seats will work best for your vehicle and to find out if any special equipment will be needed to ensure that the seat properly fits in the vehicle. Be sure to have your child try the seat on for size before you buy it. This way you can check that the child is comfortable in the seat and that he or she can be positioned properly in it.

Injuries can also be prevented by properly securing the car seat with all safety harnesses, locking clips and seat belts. Seats shouldn’t move more than one inch in any direction and harness straps should fit snugly against the child – only one finger should be able to fit between the child and the strap. Failure to properly secure the seat can cause it to tip over, slide sideways or even be ejected from the car during a crash.

Always fill out the registration card that came with the car seat and send it to the manufacturer. Each year numerous seats are recalled for various safety defects – some of which could cause serious harm to your child if not fixed. For a list of all recalled safety seats check out NHTSA’s website at www.nhtsa.gov/people/injury/childps.

Discontinue use of the seat if parts are broken, rusted or if the frame is cracked. Also get rid of the seat after an accident (other than a fender bender). Seats over 10 years old or those manufactured before May 1984 (which is when the federal government began regulating child safety seats) should also not be used.

Many local police stations and child safety groups hold safety checks where parents can have a child safety expert examine the seat to make sure it is safe for your child and is installed properly. In Pennsylvania parents can also call PennDOT at 1-800-CAR-BELT to get free advice on how to correctly install a car seat.