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Facts and Safety Tips

Child Passenger Safety Facts

Ohio law says all children must ride in an age appropriate child safety seat until they are 4 years old AND weigh at least 40 pounds. As of October 7, 2009, every child under age 8 must ride in a booster seat or other appropriate child safety seat unless the child is 4'9" or taller. Every child from 8 to 15 years old who is not secured in a car seat must be secured in the vehicle's seat belt.

 Crash data shows that children ages 12 and under are safest when riding in the back seat correctly restrained in a child safety seat or safety belt.

According to the Center for Health Statistics, motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for children of every age from 3 to 14 years old. Every day in the US, an average of 6 children age 14 and younger were killed and 673 were injured in motor vehicle crashes during 2004.


Child Passenger Safety Tips

• Infants should ride rear facing until at least 1 year of age and 20 pounds. For optimal protection, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends children remain rear facing until reaching the maximum rear facing weight limit of the child safety seat.  Most child safety seats on the market today can be used rear facing up to 30 to 35 pounds.

• Children over 1 year old who weigh between 20 and 40 pounds should ride in forward facing child safety seats.

• Kids over 40 pounds should use a belt positioning booster seat or a child safety seat with a harness that can be used to a higher weight limit.  It is recommended that a child ride in a booster seat until he or she is about 8 years of age and approximately 4 feet 9 inches tall.

• When safety belts fit children correctly, after 8 years of age, both the lap and shoulder belt should be used. 

• Never purchase a used car seat from a second hand store or garage sale. You have no way of knowing whether the seat has sustained damage from a crash, or if it is on the national recall list.

Rear-Facing Child Restraint Tips

• Always read your vehicle owner’s manual and the child safety seat manufacturer’s instructions before installing your child’s safety seat. 

• Once installed, the child safety seat should not move more than 1 inch from side to side or toward the front of the vehicle. To test for tightness, grab the child safety seat on either side just above the safety belt path and try to move the seat from side to side and front to back.

• Check to make sure the infant’s head is lying back against the child safety seat.  The car seat should be reclined enough so the infant’s head does not fall forward.  A firmly rolled towel or pool noodle can be placed in the crack of the vehicle seat to help achieve a correct angle.  Many child safety seats come with an adjustable base, which can also help. Most newer child safety seats that can be used rear facing have a level indicator that identifies the manufacturer’s recommended correct angle. 

• Place harness straps in the slots at or below the child’s shoulders.  This holds the child’s shoulders down in the child safety seat in the event of a crash.

• Keep harness straps snug! You should not be able to pinch any excess webbing at the child’s shoulders.

• Place the harness retainer clip at armpit level and thread correctly.

Forward-Facing Child Restraint Tips

• Always read your vehicle owner’s manual and the car seat manufacturer’s instructions before installing your child’s safety seat. 

• Place the child safety seat in the upright position, according to manufacturer’s instructions.

• Once installed, the child safety seat should not move more than 1 inch from side to side or toward the front of the vehicle. To test for tightness, grab the child safety seat on either side just above the safety belt path and try to move the seat from side to side and front to back.

• Place the harness straps in the slots at or above the child’s shoulders, usually the top slots, unless the manufacturer specifies a different position.  This will lessen the forward motion of the child during a severe crash.

• Keep harness straps snug! You should not be able to pinch any excess webbing at the child’s shoulders.

• Place the harness retainer clip at armpit level and thread correctly.

Booster Seat Tips

• Belt positioning booster seats without harnesses are designed for children over 40 pounds, who are between 4 and 8 years of age. 

• A booster seat must always be used with a lap and shoulder belt.

• Position the lap belt low over the hips and upper thighs and the shoulder belt snugly across the child’s chest and mid-shoulder.
• The child's legs should bend naturally over the edge of the seat when the child is sitting upright against the back of the seat.

If your child tries to place the shoulder belt behind his/her back, under the arm or the lap belt crosses the belly, he/she is probably too small for an adult seat belt. To ride safely, the child should be restrained in a belt positioning booster seat that places the seat belt low over the hips and upper thighs and snug over the shoulder.

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Safe Kids Central Ohio Phone: 614-645-6138 Fax: 614-645-6745

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