The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has released new car seat guidelines for kids. The biggest change is that they recommend keeping a kid in a car seat for as many months or years possible as long as the child still is within the manufacturer’s requirements. The NHTSA also advises to keep children in the back seat until 13 years old.
Child seats have been the issue of recalls this year, so the NHTSA has set up a website where all manufacturers can be found to register the child seat and receive any defect or recall notices. Child restraints saved approximately 8,959 kids from 1975 to 2008, says the NHTSA. But there is still a lot of work to be done as auto accidents remain the leading cause of death for kids three to 14 years old.
Beyond auto accidents, children are vulnerable to heat strokes and hyperthermia, kidnapping, getting trapped in a moving vehicle, and being injured from vehicle accessories, says the organization Kids and Cars. The Washington Post had a Pulitzer-prize winning article in 2010 about “Fatal Distraction – Kids, Cars and Hyperthermia” that showed how one man’s absent-mindedness irrevocably changed his family.
“Accidents can happen right in your own garage or driveway,” warns the Kids and Cars website. The organization provides tips for parents and drivers to remember that protecting kids should be the number one priority.
The biggest things to look out for include:
• never leave keys in reach of kids
• make sure all passengers have left the car after the driver parks
• make sure children stay away from moving vehicles
• having a backup detection device or other monitoring features to prevent back overs or front overs
• if a child is inside a locked vehicle and looks hot or sick call 911
Auto insurance providers can also help parents go through safety checklists to make sure the entire family is safeguarded. Items to go over include:
• Proper child seats
• Child safety locks
• Internal trunk release mechanisms
• Car alarm
• Safer power window switches
• Rearview camera systems
• Proper age appropriate harnesses and seatbelts
• Adequate bodily injury coverage
The Orlando auto insurance company The Florida Insurance Group has helped families and drivers make their vehicle safe and have the right coverage to uphold the family’s safety and livelihood. For more than 20 years they have assisted Orlando residents in obtaining the highest quality insurance at the best value.
For more information:
1-888-525-2210
www.floridainsurance.com
Milla Tawnie writes for Orlando auto insurance and Orlando home insurance agency, the Florida Insurance Group. To learn more or to get auto and home insurance quotes, visit http://www.floridainsurance.com