Child Safety Devices

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Ensuring Child Safety Is a Must For Any Driver

A moving vehicle is a dangerous place for anybody, but especially a child.  Safe and defensive driving is simply not enough when it comes to protecting kids in the car.  Proper use of child restraint devices and proper positioning of your little passengers are both absolute musts for ensuring the utmost safety for the children riding in your vehicle. Remember there are car child safety laws you must adhere to, but we have some advice for child car safety seats and child safety in a car, below.

The Back Seat is the Safest Place for Kids

Kids under the age of 12 should always ride in the back seat: This is the area of your vehicle that affords the most room and protection from hitting anything in the vehicle with deadly or injurious force.  In fact, children sitting in the back seat are 26% less likely to be fatally injured in a car crash.

With the advent of today’s airbag technologies, the backseat rule for kids holds truer today than ever before.  Airbags were not designed with childrens’ body types in mind—making an inflating airbag highly dangerous to a small passenger.  By riding in the backseat, kids can eliminate the risk of being seriously injured by an airbag meant to protect an adult body.

Child Safety Seats and Restraint Devices

96 percent of parents who use child safety seats, booster seats and safety belts think they are using the safety devices correctly. Shockingly, repeated studies have shown that 4 out of 5 drivers out of that 96 percent unintentionally make usage mistakes that could result in a child suffering injury or death in even a minor accident.  Translation: You should constantly review owners manuals and guidelines for the child safety devices you use to keep your kids safe!

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) gives the following guidelines on effective safety strategies for children of various ages:

  • Infants should ride in the back seat in a car safety seat or approved until age 1 and at least 20-22 pounds (9-10 kilograms).
  • Infants who weigh 20 pounds (9 kilograms) before 1 year of age should ride in a rear facing child car seat approved for their weight.
  • Children over age one and at least 20 pounds (9 kilograms) may ride facing forward with a car safety seat.
  • Keep your child in a safety seat with a full harness as long as possible, or at least until your child is 40 pounds (18 kilograms) and is at least 4 years old.
  • After the child has “graduated” from a car safety seat, the child should start wearing a regular safety belt. The adult lap and shoulder belt system alone will not fit most children until they are at least 4 feet 9 inches (1.44 meters) tall and weigh about 80 pounds (36 kilograms).

If You Must Place A Child in the Passenger Seat…

Occasionally, there will be scenarios when you have no choice but to have a child ride up front in the passenger seat.  These situations include pickup trucks with no rear seating, kids with medical conditions that require heavy supervision, and transporting large groups of children at once.
Should any of these situations occur, be sure to:

  • Make certain the child is properly restrained in an approved child safety restraint device.
  • Position the front seat as far back as possible.
  • Ensure the child does not lean out of position in the restraint.
  • If possible, set your air bag ON-OFF switch to the OFF position.

Further Reading

You can’t get enough information about keeping kids as safe as possible inside your car.  We recommend visiting the NTSB website for the latest child safety guidelines and requirements.