(Media release from the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety):
The Governor’s Office of Highway Safety is joining the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) Office of Injury Prevention, to encourage parents and caregivers across Georgia to make sure their precious cargo is riding in a properly-installed car seat or booster seat. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has designated September 17- 23, 2023 as National Child Passenger Safety Week and for this week, GOHS, DPH and certified child passenger safety technicians will be traveling around the state to promote child car safety and to check seats to make sure they are installed properly.
CPS Week is dedicated to teaching parents and caregivers about the importance of correctly choosing, installing, and using car seats, booster seats, and seat belts because car crashes are still a leading cause of death for children. In 2021, 710 children under age 13 were killed in passenger vehicle crashes in the United States and more than a third (36%) of those children were not restrained.
This year, educational events will be held throughout Georgia in local communities. DPH will be hosting in-person events: September 18 at Wayne County Farmer’s Market in Jesup from 5 p.m. – 7 p.m., September 20 at Harris County Community Center in Hamilton from 5 p.m. – 7 p.m., and in Clarke County at Cornerstone Church Athens on September 21 from 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. In-person events will include both community car seat checks and daycare visits where transport vehicles will be made available to ensure car/booster seats are not damaged, recalled or expired and that seat belts are safely utilized.
In addition to instructing parents and caregivers on how to install and use car/booster seats correctly, technicians also help determine if children are in the right seat for their age, height and weight and explain the importance of registering car seats with their manufacturer to ensure recall notifications if they occur.
“Making sure our children are always riding safely restrained is essential and the goal this week is to remind parents and adults to always check their child’s seat to make sure it is properly installed in order to provide the maximum protection in the event of a crash,” Allen Poole, Director of the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety said. “We encourage all parents – especially those expecting their first child, grandparents, and adult child caregivers to make an appointment to have their seat checked at the nearest fitting station.”
Georgia state law requires children to be restrained in a car seat or booster seat appropriate for their height and weight until the age of 8. Why? Because research shows car seats reduce the risk of fatal injury by 71 percent with infants and 54 percent with toddlers in passenger vehicles. In addition, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recommends keeping children rear-facing as long as possible, up to the top height or weight allowed by their particular seat. Once a child outgrows the rear-facing-only “infant- style” car seat, he/she should travel in a rear-facing “convertible,” or all-in-one car seat. Once a child outgrows the rear-facing size limits, the child is ready to travel in a forward-facing car seat with a harness. After outgrowing the forward-facing car seat with harness, children should be placed in booster seats until they’re the right size to use seat belts safely. And if children are under 13 years old, they should always sit in the back seat.
“On average, more than half of the car seats technicians and law enforcement encounter on the road are installed incorrectly,” said Traci Napier Reece, Program Manager for the Child Occupant Safety Program at the Georgia Department of Public Health. “If you are unable to attend one of the statewide events scheduled for CPS Week, parents and caregivers are encouraged to contact a fitting station near them for an appointment to determine if their car seats and booster seats are appropriate for their child’s age and size, and are installed correctly.”
Parents and caregivers looking for a local fitting station can visit http://www.gahighwaysafety.org/fitting-locations for a county-by-county list of stations and contact information to make an appointment.