In a crash, when your car crunches to a halt, the people inside carry on moving at around twice the speed the car was travelling at.
And that's why it's unforgivable not to make sure your child is strapped in, always. The chance of small children being seriously hurt, even killed, during a collision when not securely fastened into an appropriately-sized baby seat is five times as great as when they are secure.
Paramedics see the results every day of adults allowing their children to sit in the front seat, or even stand between the front seats. This situation can lead to your child’s death or at least, serious injury.
In a crash, when your car crunches to a halt, the people inside carry on moving at around twice the speed the car was travelling at.
And that's why it's unforgivable not to make sure your child is strapped in, always. The chance of small children being seriously hurt, even killed, during a collision when not securely fastened into an appropriately-sized baby seat is five times as great as when they are secure.
Paramedics see the results every day of adults allowing their children to sit in the front seat, or even stand between the front seats. This situation can lead to your child’s death or at least, serious injury.
Collisions occur in a split second and, in some cases, are unavoidable. What happens to your child if you are forced to brake sharply? He or she will smash into the object in front of him or her, like a projectile.
At the time of a collision, a person’s body continues to travel at an average of double the speed of the vehicle in which the person is travelling once the vehicle stops.
That is the speed at which your child could hit the windscreen or dashboard of the vehicle. In some cases the child is flung right through the windscreen.
Obviously very serious injuries occur – even if the baby or child survives it. Collisions frequently happen at such high speeds that there is no time for children to try and hold on to something to save them.
Added to this, compared to adults, children of 4 or younger are top-heavy in relation to their body mass and their neck muscles are comparatively weak.
In serious collisions involving children, injuries affecting their necks and heads are very common.
A baby seat should be secured according to the manufacturer’s specifications at all times.
Babies over one year should preferably be kept in the back seat, in view of the fact that the front seat can act as a buffer (manufacturer specifications).
However, it is absolutely essential that children continue to be kept in a baby seat or, when older, that they use a seatbelt while sitting on a specially-designed booster seat, which allows for the natural curiosity of a child to be satisfied while their parents drive around.
Most new vehicles are equipped with an airbag in the front passenger seat. If the person using that seat is shorter than 140cm in height, then the airbag should be disconnected. Airbags have been designed for adults and can cause serious injury or death to children during a collision.
Vehicle seats are primarily designed for adults; therefore it is important to make use of specially designed support equipment for children younger than 12 years of age. Children up to the age of 4 must always be put in a baby or child’s seat.
