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Driving Safely with Kids in Car Seats

If you are regularly driving around West Palm Beach or Boca Raton with a child who requires a car seat, it is important to make sure that you have installed the seat properly to prevent injuries in a car accident. According to a recent report in Today, “many parents are making mistakes with their children’s car seat and those errors could have devastating consequences.” That statement comes from a new study in which researchers determined that a large number of car seats simply are not installed properly, increasing the risk of child injury in a motor vehicle crash.

Whether you have a young child or grandchild who rides in your car, what do you need to know about car seat use and avoiding auto crash injuries?

New Study Suggests Parents Have Difficulty Installing Car Seats Properly

According to researchers who conducted a recent study on car seat installation, “more than half of forward-facing car seats were not being properly tethered to anchors in the vehicle, which could result in the seat pitching forward in an accident or sudden stop.” A recent study was conducted by Safe Kids Worldwide, which is a nonprofit organization that focuses on childhood safety issues. Why are parents and other drivers with kids failing to tether the seat to vehicle anchors? In short, people either do not know about the tether, or they do not think it is important.

How important is it to tether the car seat to the vehicle? According to Lorrie Walker, a manager at Safe Kids Worldwide, “a properly secured tether reduces the opportunity for injury, in particular, head injury.” The concept of tethering should be important when it comes to car seat installation, but also to other objects in the car. When there are loose objects in your vehicle, they can become projectiles in a crash.

Staying Safe in the Car with Kids

Car seat safety is just one way to ensure that kids are not injured in a moving vehicle. In addition to properly installing and secure a car seat, parents should also be aware of other injury risks and should take steps to avoid them. According to the article, the following is a list of what not to do when you are driving in a car with children passengers:

  • Do not keep loose objects in the cabin of your vehicle, especially hard or heavy ones;
  • Do not use mirrors with rear-facing baby seats to see your child’s face while you drive—these mirrors can result in distracted driving accidents;
  • Do not let your child sit in the front seat of the car if she or he is too young to do so;
  • Do not allow your child to sit in a forward-facing car seat if she or he is under the age of two;
  • Do not keep a heavy coat on your child when she is in a car seat, as this can “interfere with the fit of the car seat’s harness”;
  • Do not talk on the phone while your kids are in the car;
  • Do not drive at night if you do not have to; and
  • Do not drive in bad weather unless you absolutely need to do so.

Contact a West Palm Beach Car Accident Lawyer

Car accidents in Florida can be devastating, especially when they involve children. If you or someone you love sustained injuries in a car accident, you should discuss your options with a West Palm Beach car accident attorney. You may be eligible to file a claim for compensation. Contact Lesser Lesser Landy & Smith PLLC to speak with an advocate today.

Resource:

today.com/health/driving-safe-kids-car-seats-dos-donts-t116490

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