In-Car Child Safety Initiative

News Release

Click HERE to see Television Coverage of the 2006 campaign launch (5MB)

EMBARGOED UNTIL: 00.01 18 JUNE 2007

IN-CAR SAFETY CAMPAIGN TARGETS SCOTLAND

Scottish families are being targeted by an initiative to improve in-car safety for children by reducing the number of badly-fitted car seats being used in vehicles.

Checks on child seats, carried out by Road Safety Officers across Scotland, last year, revealed that almost half[i] were either fitted incorrectly or were incompatible with the make or model of car they were being used in.

The major areas of concern were:

seats that were too small or too big for the child using them;
seats that did not fit properly in the car they were used in;
seatbelts that were twisted and too loose to keep the seat secure, and
buckles that were bent or rested on the car seat frame.

The advertising campaign will launch at the start of Child Safety Week on 18^th June 2007 and will run on radio stations across Scotland. More importantly however, Road Safety Officers will carry out “child seat checks[ii]” around Scotland throughout the summer, to advise parents on how to fit and buy child car seats.

Michael McDonnell, Director, Road Safety Scotland, says: “Parents must understand that there is a real life-and-death difference for their children if they fit the wrong seat, or fit the right seat incorrectly.

“Unrestrained children can be killed at speeds as low as 5mph, so it is important that children are properly restrained on every trip.

“Legislation introduced last year has extended the need for car seats to all children who are under 12 or less than 135cm in height. Parents must make sure they buy the correct seat for the car and child, and make sure that if they move it from car to car, the reinstallation is correct and secure.

“There are well over 100 child seats on the market, with many new ones now available for older children, but for some cars there may only be a few that can be properly fitted. It can be very confusing for parents, so they need to seek expert advice from ‘Good Egg Retailers* or they could be wasting their money and putting their children in danger.”

The initiative, spearheaded by a consortium of public and private sector organisations including Road Safety Scotland, the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland (ACPOS), the Arnold Clark Group, and Local Road Safety Units, is designed to encourage parents to take in-car safety more seriously.

Thousands of guides are being distributed as part of the In-Car Child Safety Initiative, designed to drive home the importance of correctly fitted seats and proper restraints for children.

Sir Arnold Clark, Chief Executive of the Arnold Clark Group, which has sponsored the campaign, says: “One of the biggest concerns in a car accident is the safety of young passengers and it is parents’ responsibility to make sure their children are as safe as possible.

“It doesn’t take much time to check a car seat is fitted properly but it’s too late after a collision. We urge parents to ensure that their child seats are fitted safely – it could ultimately save their child’s life”.

*Information on Good Egg Retailers, the new law and other safety information, can be found on the campaign website at www.protectchild.co.uk.

ENDS

Media contact:

Elaine Fee, Dynamic PR, on 0141 569 7260 or dynamicpr@ntl.com

Notes to editors:

In 2006, there were:

652 child casualties in cars (about one third of all child casualties)
69 children were killed or seriously injured in cars

The new law changes on the use of child car seats to include older children came into effect on 18 September 2006.

[i] 852 car seat checks were carried out in summer 2006 with 397 being incorrectly fitted or incompatible with the car they were being used in.

[ii] For further information on Child Safety Clinics across Scotland go to www.protectchild.co.uk.