Children in Auto Accidents Face Higher Risk of Injury

Earlier this month near the Texas Motor Speedway, a car accident caused by a driver who ran a red light left two children injured and their father dead.

The licensed Fort Worth car accident lawyers at Anderson, Cummings & Drawhorn, LLP note that this collision occurred shortly after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) unveiled a new report indicating that child deaths in auto accidents is on the decline. Between 2002 and 2011, the number of children who have lost their lives in an auto accident decreased by nearly 45 percent.

Serious personal injuries to children remain a major problem, though; about 9,000 children under the age of 12 were still fatally injured during this time. It is estimated that 150,000 children are injured in traffic collisions each year.

One encouraging statistic from the study is that seat belt use among children grew to 91 percent in 2011 and older children are less likely than younger ones to be properly belted.

The CDC recommends that children under 2 be placed in rear-facing car seats; children under 5 in forward facing child seats; children under the age of 8 may be placed in a booster seat. However, each state has their own laws on age and height requirements for children needing booster seats.

Although child safety seats are meant to protect our children, car seats may not function as intended.

Graco recently recalled 4 million car safety seats because children could become trapped, which poses a serious danger in situations such as a fire or car collision. When food or dried liquid comes in contact with the buckle, the buckle may become more and more difficult to unlatch.

Additionally, the car seat manufacturer is refusing to recall another seven models even though federal regulators are urging the company to do so. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is still investigating the matter.

The NHTSA is also investigating several Evenflo car seats after it was reported that they have a similar design to the recently recalled Graco seats.

Such information should not deter parents from using car seats, but replacement kits should be sought out immediately.

Parents should also make sure they install a car seat correctly as the CDC points out that 70 percent of car and booster seats observed in a survey were incorrectly being used.

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