Please use and check your children's car seats!

Two small children, involved in separate accidents in my city have had to be airlifted to a Children's Hospital in Tampa with serious injuries. One was a 6 month old infant involved in a head on collision on a road with a 30mph speed limit. The other was a 3 year old sitting unrestrained in the passenger seat while her mother turned into a side street into the path of oncoming traffic which could not avoid hitting her. The car was hit exactly where the 3 year old was sitting.

There are no reports of how the infant in the first accident was or was not restrained - it has me wondering though. The second accident happened in a not so good part of town, and the mother/driver refused a blood test. I could make many judgments based on these facts, but will avoid doing so since that's not the point of my post.

As responsible parents, many of us research safety ratings of equipment we use for our kids. There are many expensive car seat options out there. None of which are any use whatsoever if 1. they are not installed, or 2. not installed correctly.

The statistic in my county is that 95% of car seats are installed incorrectly. So, 95% of kids traveling around are not adequately protected in the event of an accident. In addition, poorly installed car seats can be the cause of injury in an accident where the child is injured by the straps or the chest buckle for example.

We read our owner's manuals for our kids' car seats - the infant seat, and later the convertible car seats. We followed the instructions to a 't'. Wanting to be absolutely sure they were installed correctly, I have had them checked by a certified car seat technician each time. Each time she has helped me improve the installation - so despite our best efforts, the seats were not in fact installed 100% correctly.

For a few minutes of my time, I have the advice of a specialist, and have her overview my technique in installing the seats, and importantly, in positioning the child, and the straps in the seats. With this comes the peace of mind that I have protected my children as well as I can by restraining them appropriately in the car.

Please have your children's car seats inspected by a qualified technician. You can find one in your area by contacting your local hospital, or your County Sheriff's Department. Do it today! You can check out Safekids USA for information on your State's specific safety laws and requirements.

You should also ensure that every adult traveling in your car wears a seat belt. Adults not restrained by a seat belt can become a deadly missile in the event of an accident, further endangering your children in the back.

As my Mum has often said to me, people wouldn't dream of transporting their breakables when moving house or after buying some expensive item, without wrapping them in bubble wrap and securing them appropriately. People need to afford the same duty of care to their kids!