Car Seat Safety For Infants And Children

One of the most important jobs you have as a parent is keeping your child safe when riding in a vehicle. Each year thousands of young children are killed or injured in car crashes. Proper use of car safety seats helps keep children safe. But with so many different car safety seats on the market it is hard to know what one to chose.

Car seats have manufacturer expiration dates. Dates can be as many as eight years and in some cases as little as five years. Parents should know that NHTSA instructs it's techs and both Safe Kids and the Juvenile Product Manufacturers Association agree that no seat should be used for more than a period of six years from its date of manufacture. Both experts and seat manufacturers agree that seats do have a finite lifespan. Best practice would be to retire that seat after six years. That is of course unless your car seat manufacturer states that its lifespan is five years. Always consult your seat markings, labels and manual for this information.

So why do car seats expire? Here are three reasons why they expire.
• Car seat technology is always evolving, as are vehicles' ability to secure seats properly and consistently. Before 2002, Lower Anchor & Tethers for Children (LATCH) did not exist. Now it's a common system by which car seats are installed. The same is true of top tethers on car seats and tether anchors in cars. A skilled technician would never think to bypass tether usage if it is an option. This technology exists to make our children safer.
• Materials wear out. Plastic stresses and warps. Straps and fabrics fray and rip. Instruction manuals get lost or destroyed. Important instructional labels fade, tear or fall off completely.
• Your manufacturer may no longer stock replacement manuals and parts. Maybe the company has gone out of business entirely.
The bottom line is this: Know how to check your car seat expiration date and vital information. Retire that old car seat and get a new one if necessary.

Ten Basic Rules for using car seats:
• Kids 12 and under should ALWAYS ride in the back seat. This cuts their risk of death by 36%.Kids should be in a car seat or booster until they can be seated properly in a seat belt. For most kids, this is around 8 years old or 4' 9" tall, but proper seatbelt fit is the most important factor. Some states have laws stating a child has to be in a booster seat until age 8 years old. Check your local state laws.
• Never place a rear-facing car seat in the front seat when there is an active frontal airbag.
• Keep your baby rear-facing as long as possible. That can mean up to 30, 33 or 35 pounds in most current convertible seats unless they outgrow it by height first.
• Always read the owners manuals for your vehicle and car seat thoroughly. They often contain specific information about car seat installation that may not be obvious. Some models may vary from what you would expect.
• Make sure that the harness fits snugly on your child, the car seat fits snugly in your vehicle, and that your vehicle seatbelts are locked properly. If you don't know how to install it properly many fire departments will help in teaching how to install.
• When you buy a car seat, make sure you have a good return policy in case it doesn't fit or in case you find you don't like it.
• Be wary of used car seats, especially those over 6 years old, those with an unknown history that may have been in a crash, those that show any form of cracks or damage, and those with missing labels, model number, manufacturing date, instructions or parts.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, motor vehicle crashes are the #1 killer of kids in age groups 1-14. Safe Kids USA says motor vehicle crashes are the #1 cause of unintentional injury-related death for all children 14 and under. While some crashes are un-survivable, over 57% of deaths for children 0-15 were because the child was unrestrained. Many more were improperly restrained. Nationally, the misuse rate for child safety seats is over 80% and as high as 95% in some areas. The good news is that correct use of car seats and boosters does save lives. Infant seats have been shown to reduce fatal injury by 71%, and toddler seats by 54%.

Make your child is safe by selecting the proper car seat, installing it properly and using it every time your child is traveling in your car or in someone else's car.

Marilyn Bohn's Bio
Marilyn is a creative organizer who has been organizing for over 20 years. She is a member of the National Association of Professional Organizers and is working towards becoming a Certified Professional Organizer. Professionally she has been organizing homes and offices for over two years. She holds a bachelors degree in Social Work. She has reared five daughters and currently lives in Utah.

Go to her website http://www.marilynbohn.com where you can find free organizing tips and interesting blogs and helpful articles on organizing.