Ill-fitted car seats 'can have devastating effects'

Date: 23/9/2010

Correctly-fitted car restraints are crucial to children's safety, it has been claimed.

Matt Peskett, Kingswood Station Manager at Avon Fire and Rescue Service, told the Bristol Evening Post inappropriate car seats can have devastating consequences.

Staff from the unit have been urging parents in South Gloucestershire to ensure car seats are fitted properly, alongside road safety officials and local police.

People were shown how to select the correct restraint for their vehicle and check their current seats.

Mr Peskett stated statistics suggest youngsters in correctly-fitted car seats are 90 per cent less likely to be killed in an accident.

"As an emergency service we respond to road traffic collisions and all too often witness the devastating effects of these types of incidents," he commented.

A survey recently carried out by Conwy Council Road Safety Officers found just six out of 51 child seats in a supermarket car park were fitted correctly, according to North Wales News.

For TRL's best practice guide on how to fit your child seat correctly, please click here.

Posted by Sarah Bailey