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Seatbelt
Safety - Facts and Figures - Myths
About Seatbelts
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Many children are injured or killed because they ride unrestrained in a vehicle. More than 75 percent of these incidents could have been prevented by the use of correctly worn seat belts or approved child safety seats
More than 5,000 children die each year as passengers in vehicular crashes. In many cases, no safety belt was worn and the child was sitting in the front seat during a short trip. In some cases, a child was riding unrestrained in back of an open pickup truck bed or camper.
Children must understand the importance of seat belt use. In fact, it's the law! Putting on a seat belt should become a routine habit. While there are a variety of reasons why people don't use seat belts, most are based on misconceptions and fallacies.
We can expect to be in a car crash once every 10 years, and a serious one every 20 years. At some point in their life, 85 percent of the population will be involved in a serious car crash. The forces involved are horrendous. A 150 pound person exerts a force of more than two tons in a 30 mile per hour collision. Yet, seat belts can reduce injuries and medical costs by 50 percent.
Proper use of the seat belt and shoulder strap is important. When using a seat belt, make sure to hear the "click" when you buckle-up. The seat belt and shoulder strap should be positioned snugly across the hips and shoulders. A seat belt incorrectly positioned above the hips, may result in serious injury to abdominal organs in a crash. Likewise, the shoulder strap should be placed directly over the shoulder. Otherwise, a neck injury may result during a collision. Finally, avoid excessive slack in the belt.
Children should never share the use of a seat belt and they should not take their seat belts off until the vehicle has come to a complete stop. They should never sit in anyone's lap in a moving vehicle. A child sitting in someone's lap is the single, most dangerous place to be in a crash. It is impossible to hold them in a collision.
Child safety seats should be used from the first time a child is in a car, until they are big enough to use an adult seat belt properly. Age appropriate car seats and travel vests are available. It is important to follow the manufacturer's instructions for correct use. Infant safety seats are designed to face the rear of the vehicle.
Always check the seat to ensure that the harness and belt are snug and secure. If a vehicle is equipped with a passenger side air bag, place the infant safety seat rear-facing in the back seat of the car. NEVER place an infant seat in the front seat of a vehicle equipped with passenger side airbags. Some models of infant car seats can be used as infant carriers as well. Check the manufacturer's instructions to make sure that the seat can be used as a carrier, AND a car seat. Some car seats are called convertibles. This means that they can be used as rear-facing infant seats, but then convert to forward facing toddler seats. Check the manufacturer's instructions for weight limits for each application of the car seat. Also, check the manufacturer's instructions to see how and when a tether strap can be used.
For children weighing more than 20 pounds and who are at least 12 months of age, forward facing seats can be used. Some of these seats come equipped with a tether strap, which further secures the car seat. Read your vehicle owner's manual to see if your vehicle has tether anchor locations. If so, contact your auto dealer to obtain a tether anchor kit.
As a child gets older, they should ride in approved booster seats, which help fill the gap between a child seat and regular use of a seat belt. Make sure to use booster seats with upper torso support, either by using a lap and shoulder belt or by using the harness supplied by the manufacturer. Again, follow the manufacturer's instructions carefully when installing child safety seats. Arizona law requires the use of an approved child restraint seat for children up to age five, now matter how much they weigh.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recommends that a child weighs around 80 pounds and is between four and five feet tall before they can use a regular vehicle seat belt. Their backs should rest comfortably against the back of the vehicle seat and their legs should bend at the edge of the seat.
Questions about car seat use, seatbelt use or car seat inspections can be referred to (602) 262-6910.
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Facts and Figures
Each year, 15,000 lives could be saved if everyone wore seat belts. At 30 miles per hour, an unrestrained passenger weighing 150 pounds exerts the force of more than two tons, as it crashes against another object. This is enough to kill!
Only 61 percent of Americans always use their seat belts when they are driving in their car. Another 30 percent sometimes use the belts, and nine percent never do.