Child Passenger Safety Week- Tips for Car Seat Use
Constable Mark Herman's office would like to focus on the proper use of car safety seats for children. The national campaign urges parents and caregivers to protect their children making sure they secure them in the correct car seat for their age, height, and weight.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Center for Disease Control report motor vehicle injuries are a leading cause of death among children in the United States. Many of these deaths can be prevented. Always buckling children in age- and size-appropriate car seats, booster seats, and seat belts reduce serious and fatal injuries by up to 80%.
Know the Stages:
As children grow, the model of car seat changes to keep up with their age and their size.
1. From birth to about age 3, use a rear-facing car seat.
2. After outgrowing the rear-facing car seat, use a forward-facing car seat until about age 5.
3. Once children outgrow their forward-facing seat, they should be buckled in a belt-positioning booster seat until seat belts fit properly.
4. Once seat belts fit properly without a booster seat, use a seat belt on every trip. Seat belts fit properly when the lap belt lays across the upper thighs (not the stomach) and the shoulder belt lays across the chest (not the neck).
