Troy Officials Offer Free Child Car Seat Safety Check-Up
Brent O’ Hara travels with his grandson from time to time so getting the thumbs up on his car seat is important for him.
“I feel i have a responsibility to make sure that i can get him to either his home safely or to my house safely,” says O’ Hara.
From a general inspection to recall checks O’ Hara along with other drivers had the chance to learn how to properly install car seats.
” 4 children die everyday in the united states-somewhere in the united states because they’re improperly restrained,” says Mike James, CPS Coordinator.
In fact, officials say 93 percent of the car seats in Alabama are improperly used.
“That’s a huge number,” says James.
So before you buckle up with a child in the back seat. Officials say it’s important to read the instruction manual that comes with the car seat and your car’s manual. But beware, because those manuals could leave out important information.
“The manuals for the car seats are a little bit difficult to read sometimes and kind of hard to figure out what’s going on and the manual for the car isn’t always as specific as it should be either,” says James
That’s where these technicians come in, explaining some of the biggest mistakes parents make.
‘Number one the car seat’s too loose or not hooked up correctly or number two the child is way loose inside the harness. if you think about it, as adults-isn’t the seatbelt laying right against your body? the answer is yes,” says James.
“I picked up a lot of side information as to how much the seat can wiggle sideways and frontward,” says O’ Hara.
Officials say those may be minor details for some people but they can make a big difference.
If you would like to learn more about keeping your child safe in their car seats visit www.cpsalabama.org.
