What’s the single most precious thing we put in our motor vehicles?
OUR CHILDREN!
So why do so many of us put them in danger every time we get behind the wheel?
With newer cars comes newer technology. Airbags not only for the driver but the passenger, curtain airbags for side protection, seatbelt pretensioners, stability and traction control. These are all there for the safety of the occupants, but only if used properly and in accordance with the makers’ instructions.
Many new vehicles now carry warning messages about airbags on the sun visors. Messages of “WARNING Death or Serious injury can occur “
· Children 12 and under can be killed by the air bag
· The back seat is the Safest place for children
· NEVER put a rear- facing child seat in the front
· Sit as far back as possible from the airbag
· ALWAYS use SEAT BELTS and CHILD RESTRAINTS
I am sure we have all seen messages like this at some time in our driving life but what do they really mean? What are the implications?
Airbags are designed to work instantly to help cushion the impact of an accident, deployment times are approximately 0.03 of a second (quicker than a human eye can blink). Airbags are designed to adult specifications, that is why we need to place smaller children in approved methods of restraint to give them the best chance in the case of an accident and not in the front seats.
An extract for the RACT states “My child has turned seven, does that mean he/she can now move out of their booster seat?
The law states that children seven years and over must use an approved
child restraint or properly adjusted and securely fastened seat belt while
sitting on the vehicle seat. The average seven year old cannot fit an adult
seatbelt correctly, in fact, most children cannot wear the adult seatbelt
correctly until 10 to 12 years of age.
Vehicle seats and seatbelts are designed for adult bodies so it is highly
unlikely that your child will fit an adult seatbelt when he/she reaches their
seventh birthday. A booster seat needs to be used until they can.
Children that move into an adult seatbelt too early are twice as likely to
suffer devastating injuries in a crash, including severe damage to the brain,
liver, spleen, stomach and spinal cord. Seatbelt fit will vary from vehicle to vehicle and even from position
to position in the same vehicle.There are now several models of booster seat on the market that
will accommodate children up to the height needed to wear the adult
seatbelt correctly”.
Recent surveys of vehicles fitted with child restraints by the RACT found that many didn’t comply with current regulations and were used by the wrong aged children. Many were second hand and in some cases were deemed to be unsafe. Further information on this can be obtained from the RACT (www.ract.com.au or see their YouTube site search RACT child restraints)
Whilst we have all done the wrong thing with restraining our children from time to time we can no longer be complacent, our roads have become busier, the motorists on them often don’t know the roads and our environmental conditions are changing with the weather being much dryer than usual so when we do get rain it makes the roads very slippery .Of course the price of these restraints have meant that the cheaper hand me down alternative is often sought. If in doubt it checked prior to using it. We all know that we cannot put a price on life.
Remember the single most precious thing we put in our vehicles isn’t the shiny new set of mags, the large bulbar on the front or the fantastic bright led lights. It’s our next generation of Doctors, Teachers, Shop Assistants and volunteers. It’s our children and Grandchildren who rely solely upon us to keep them safe at all times. That extra minute to get to the shop or the school isn’t really going to matter to much in the grand scheme of things in the end. Let’s all take that extra minute to make sure all of our precious things are properly restrained in our vehicles.
Because a minute is not that long in a life time!
Kelvin Jones
Unit Manager Glamorgan Springbay SES
OUR CHILDREN!
So why do so many of us put them in danger every time we get behind the wheel?
With newer cars comes newer technology. Airbags not only for the driver but the passenger, curtain airbags for side protection, seatbelt pretensioners, stability and traction control. These are all there for the safety of the occupants, but only if used properly and in accordance with the makers’ instructions.
Many new vehicles now carry warning messages about airbags on the sun visors. Messages of “WARNING Death or Serious injury can occur “
· Children 12 and under can be killed by the air bag
· The back seat is the Safest place for children
· NEVER put a rear- facing child seat in the front
· Sit as far back as possible from the airbag
· ALWAYS use SEAT BELTS and CHILD RESTRAINTS
I am sure we have all seen messages like this at some time in our driving life but what do they really mean? What are the implications?
Airbags are designed to work instantly to help cushion the impact of an accident, deployment times are approximately 0.03 of a second (quicker than a human eye can blink). Airbags are designed to adult specifications, that is why we need to place smaller children in approved methods of restraint to give them the best chance in the case of an accident and not in the front seats.
An extract for the RACT states “My child has turned seven, does that mean he/she can now move out of their booster seat?
The law states that children seven years and over must use an approved
child restraint or properly adjusted and securely fastened seat belt while
sitting on the vehicle seat. The average seven year old cannot fit an adult
seatbelt correctly, in fact, most children cannot wear the adult seatbelt
correctly until 10 to 12 years of age.
Vehicle seats and seatbelts are designed for adult bodies so it is highly
unlikely that your child will fit an adult seatbelt when he/she reaches their
seventh birthday. A booster seat needs to be used until they can.
Children that move into an adult seatbelt too early are twice as likely to
suffer devastating injuries in a crash, including severe damage to the brain,
liver, spleen, stomach and spinal cord. Seatbelt fit will vary from vehicle to vehicle and even from position
to position in the same vehicle.There are now several models of booster seat on the market that
will accommodate children up to the height needed to wear the adult
seatbelt correctly”.
Recent surveys of vehicles fitted with child restraints by the RACT found that many didn’t comply with current regulations and were used by the wrong aged children. Many were second hand and in some cases were deemed to be unsafe. Further information on this can be obtained from the RACT (www.ract.com.au or see their YouTube site search RACT child restraints)
Whilst we have all done the wrong thing with restraining our children from time to time we can no longer be complacent, our roads have become busier, the motorists on them often don’t know the roads and our environmental conditions are changing with the weather being much dryer than usual so when we do get rain it makes the roads very slippery .Of course the price of these restraints have meant that the cheaper hand me down alternative is often sought. If in doubt it checked prior to using it. We all know that we cannot put a price on life.
Remember the single most precious thing we put in our vehicles isn’t the shiny new set of mags, the large bulbar on the front or the fantastic bright led lights. It’s our next generation of Doctors, Teachers, Shop Assistants and volunteers. It’s our children and Grandchildren who rely solely upon us to keep them safe at all times. That extra minute to get to the shop or the school isn’t really going to matter to much in the grand scheme of things in the end. Let’s all take that extra minute to make sure all of our precious things are properly restrained in our vehicles.
Because a minute is not that long in a life time!
Kelvin Jones
Unit Manager Glamorgan Springbay SES