BA BY
Is your child’s
Car seat
International statistics show that as many as 70 to 80 % of car seats
are installed and used incorrectly. Problems can range from incorrect
installation to using a faulty car seat or facing the seat the wrong way.
How can you ensure you your child’s car seat is used properly?
safe?
Do
• Do install your car seat as per the instruction booklet.
• Do place your child’s car seat on the back seat of your vehicle.
The safest position for this is the middle of the back seat where your
child is most protected from impact from any direction. The next
best position is on either the left or right back seats. (Also to note
is that your chil d should always travel in the back seat until
12 years of age.)
• Do keep your child in the appropriate car seat or booster seat until
they are 1.5 m tall. Size is more important than age when upgrading
to different seat options.
Do not
• Do not ever hold your baby on your lap in a moving vehicle.
No matter how tightly you hold onto him or her, you will not be able
to offer adequate protection in an accident. Car seats are essential.
• Do not install a car seat on the front seat of your vehicle. If your car
has airbags, they pose a serious danger to your child. Additionally
your child is more vulnerable to objects coming through the
front windshield.
• Do not compromise on car seats, and be especially wary of second
hand car seats which may be damaged (and therefore weakened)
and are also unlikely to come with an instruction booklet to assist
with their installation.
The above information is supplied by Wheel Well, a non-profit organisation
promoting road safety for children. Wheel Well has many initiatives, one of
which includes collecting old car seats, cleaning and quality checking them
before donating them to lower income families. For more information
please visit www.wheelwell.co.za.
To redress the problem of incorrectly
installed child car seats an ISO (International
Organisation for Standardisation) standard
called ISO 13216 or ISOFIX was defined in
1995 and in 2000 the first ISOFIX car seats
were manufactured overseas. This standard
moves away from using seat belts to anchor
car seats, and instead uses brackets
manufactured into the vehicle which car
seats can then clip into in a standard way.
Most modern European and American
vehicles now come with these brackets.
Another safety standard called i-Size has
subsequently been introduced to the
market. It is based on the same ISOFIX
anchor points, but has accommodated
keeping children in rearward facing seats
for longer (up to at least 15 months) - which
has been shown to provide better head
and neck protection.
Because most South African vehicles do not
come with inbuilt ISOFIX brackets some local
car seat brands have designed their own
seat brackets which can be fitted into cars
post purchase, and which their ISOFIX and
i-Size compliant car seats then clip into. Look
out for the ISOFIX and i-Size stamps
for these features.