Why do children need to be restrained in the car?
The greatest risk to a child's life after the age of one, in this country, is an accident. Traffic accidents account for over half of all accidental deaths.
In the first 14 years of life, one in every 50 children will have been killed or injured while travelling as a passenger in a car.
Studies have shown that if children are restrained in a car their chance of survival is greatly increased. They are:
- 90 per cent less likely to be killed
- 75 per cent less likely to be seriously injured
- 67 per cent less likely to be slightly injured.
Most accidents happen within a few miles of home and:
- at speeds less than 30mph.
- on everyday trips to school, the shops or playgroup.
It is on these sort of trips that many children travel unrestrained. Because the journey is short or they are in a rush parents may not bother with strapping their children in, and yet it is on these local journeys that there is most risk of an accident occurring.
It is dangerous to travel unrestrained even on the shortest trip.
In an accident, children are more vulnerable than adults because:
- they are smaller and are more likely to be thrown around the inside of a car or flung out of the vehicle altogether
- their neck muscles and spine are weaker, their ribs and pelvic bones are under developed and some organs are less well protected than an adult's. This makes internal injury more likely.
- a child's head is bigger and heavier in relation to body size, which means they are more likley to be thrown head first and suffer head injuries.
- a young child's skull is not as protective as an adult's, with the result that brain injuries are the most common life threatening injury to child passengers.
Adult seat belts are best for adults over 1.5m (4ft 11ins) or taller. They are not designed for children, however the legal height when a child does not need to use a booster cushion is 1.35m. Booster seats or booster cushions may not be popular with older children but it puts them in the right position for the adult seat belt to give them the best protection. Don't be in a hurry to stop using them, particularly if without it the seat belt is goes across your child's neck or the lap part of the belt is above their hips.
Choosing a seat
All child restraints must have the United Nations "E" mark or BS "Kitemark".
The latest version of the United Nations standard is ECE Regulation 44.03, and restraints which are approved to this version carry an approval number starting with '03'.
Only very old seats now have a BS "kitemark" - these cannot be used after May 2008.
Many seats are not fitted correctly into the car and therefore will not protect your child in a crash. Before you buy a child restraint you should try it in your car to make sure it will fit properly. A properly fitted restraint must fit tightly into the adult seat.
Always carefully follow the fitting instructions that come with the seat.
Be very careful of old or second-hand child seats. They may be damaged (the damage may not be obvious) or worn out. They may not come up to the current standard and the fitting instructions may be missing. You could be putting your child in unnecessary danger.
More recent vehicles may have ISOfix fittings. An ISOfix child restraint is fitted using these and not the adult seat belt. They are easier and quicker to fit but check that the seat is suitable for the ISOfix fitting in your car - some will differ.
Do not
- put a child in the same belt as an adult. In an accident the adult would crush the child
- put more than one child in a seat belt
- carry a baby on an adult's knee. Even at low speeds the forces involved in an accident are so huge that it is impossible to hold on.
Pregnant women must wear seat belts as normal except the lap belt should be kept lower, below the bump and not across the unborn baby.
Contact the Road Safety team on 01724 297346/297355 or email: roadsafety@northlincs.gov.uk for further advice, or for a free check on the fitting of the child restraints in your car.
Remember, make sure your children always use the right restraint or seat belts, even on the shortest journey.
In a crash, passengers not using seat belts can also cause severe injury to other people in the car.
More information