National Child Passenger Safety Week begins Monday, September 19

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — National Child Passenger Safety Week begins on Monday, September 19, 2022. Triple-A East Central strongly urges parents and caregivers to learn how to properly install a child’s car seat as well as understanding the four stages of child passenger safety, including rear-facing car seats, forward-facing car seats, boosters seats and seat belts.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), approximately 139,042 children were injured in car crashes in 2020 tallying to more than 350 injuries daily.

Recent studies from Triple A and the National Safety Council (NSC) show a critical gap in child passenger safety awareness from both parents and caregivers. More than half of the car seats brought in for inspection to safety technicians were improperly installed and used. Yet, only 20% of parents and caregivers request help in learning how to install or secure a child in a car seat.

“Child safety seats reduce the risk of fatal injury by 71% for infants and by 54% for toddlers, but more than half of them are installed improperly,” said Lori Cook, safety advisor, AAA East Central. “That’s why AAA urges parents and caregivers to educate themselves and look for free resources, such as virtual or in-person car seat inspections in their area.

Triple A recommendations include: selecting a car seat based on the child’s age and size that properly fits the vehicle; refer to the specific car seat manufacturer’s instructions; check height and weight limits; know how to install the car seat using the seat belt or lower anchors and a tether, if available. To maximize safety, keep children in the car seat for as long as the child fits within the manufacturer’s height and weight requirements, Children 12 and under should sit in the back seat. Register all car seats and sign up for recall notices to receive safety updates.

Car Seat Basics is a free online course for parents and caretakers. Participants can complete the full training or select a module on a specific stage of child passenger safety. The course was developed through NSC’s work with NHTSA . AAA East Central “urges parents to get a car seat inspection so they can have confidence knowing that their child passenger is protected.” For more information, visit AAA.com/SafeSeats4Kids.

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