Posted in Child Injury on May 25, 2013
Children who are in the wrong car safety seats for their age, height or weight specifications, or have been moved to seatbelt use far too quickly, may be at a high risk of being injured or killed in accidents. However, new research conducted by scientists at the University Of Michigan finds that many parents are impatient to move their children into forward-facing car seats, or even front seats much before they are ready to do so.
The researchers found that too many parents are placing their children in front-facing car seat after the child crosses age 1, and less than 2% of children are being restrained in booster seats after they reach age 7. These are important car safety seat rules, and far too many parents seem to be failing to comply with these rules. What is even more staggering is that many children above the age of 6 are now being allowed to ride in the front seat with only their seat belts for protection.
There are reasons why federal regulators require that an infant be placed in a rear- facing car seat at least till he or she reaches the age of 2. However, far too many parents seem to be in a hurry to move their child to a front-facing seat, not realizingthat they may be placing their child at a serious risk of injuries.
The researchers relied on data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to analyze the behavior of motorists with approximately 21,476 child passengers. They found differences in child car safety seat usage, based on ethnicity, with black and Hispanic parents reporting much lower rates of car safety seat use compared to white passengers. Additionally, parents who were negligent, and failed to obey seatbelt laws, were also found to be much more likely to ignore child car safety seat laws. If you may have legal questions about an incident relating to child safety in automobiles, you can learn more at: www.zanerhardenlaw.com.
