Survey: 90 Percent of Children Taken Out of Booster Seats Too Soon
Even before the moment a newborn baby leaves the hospital, most parents have spent a good deal of time researching their purchase for a child safety seat. Many police departments offer child seat safety checks where parents can make sure the seat they are using is installed correctly in order to keep their child safe and protected in the event of an auto accident. Additionally, hospitals will not release an infant until they verify the baby will be put into a safety seat.
As a child gets bigger and outgrows safety seats, parents are advised to use booster seats because, although the child is too big for a car seat, they have not grown enough to use vehicle adult safety belts safely. Yet a recent study shows that many parents overlook those safety issues and take away those booster seats before the child is big enough.
Safe Kids Worldwide conducted an online survey of parents who had booster seat aged children. An incredible 90 percent of parents admitted to removing the booster seat before their child was big enough for the seat belts.
Additionally, 70 percent of parents who had children between the ages of four and 10 years old did not know that a child needs to be a minimum of 4 feet 9 inches tall in order to use an adult safety belt alone.
The reasons most parents gave for not using the booster seats had nothing to do with the height and weight of the child, but instead included answers such as the comfort of the child, the other parent’s opinion or state law.
In Texas, all children under the age of 8 years old must be in a booster seat unless they are 4 feet nine inches or taller. However, safety advocates recommend that even if a child is of legal age, unless they have met the minimum height requirement and weigh between 80 to 100 pounds, they should remain in a booster seat.
If your child has been injured in a car accident, contact an experienced New Braunfels personal injury attorney to find out what legal recourse you may have against the at-fault driver.
