HARD HITTING STATISTICS SHOW INCORRECT CHILD SAFETY SEAT USAGE HIGH IN NEVADA

REMSA’S POINT OF IMPACT PROGRAM CONTINUES COMMUNITY EDUCATION EFFORTS

September 3, 2002 – According to over 37,000 completed SAFE KIDS Buckle-Up (SKBU) checkpoint data forms submitted from nationwide coalitions promoting child safety seat correct installation and usage, Nevada is nearly 2% worse than the national average for incorrect child safety seat usage. More than 81% of the 37,000 child safety seats checked nationwide from February 2001 – May 2002 had been incorrectly installed. In Nevada, 83% of the 206 completed data forms collected from March 2001 – October 2001 were found installed incorrectly and 10 seats were recalled.

In an effort to keep young children safe in Nevada and nationwide, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) requires all new child safety seats to have a specialized way of attaching to a vehicle seat beginning September 1, 2002. Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH) is a restraint system designed to work independently of the vehicle seat belt system to simplify child safety seat installation and reduce misuse.

“The statistics are unbelievably high for incorrect child safety seat usage in our state,” states Eric Guevin, Community Education Director for REMSA and Director of SAFE KIDS Washoe County. “The new LATCH restraint system is another way parents can ensure their child’s safety when traveling. We hope to educate parents in our community about the life saving value of the new LATCH child restraint innovation because when used properly, the system can work to help reduce death and injury among our young people in our community.”

Since September 1, 2000, all vehicle manufacturers have been required to install a top strap. Beginning September 1, 2002 all new passenger vehicle manufacturers will have the LATCH system. The LATCH system is made up of a lower set of attachments that fasten to these vehicle anchors with a top strap that attaches to an anchor in the vehicle.

RESTRAINT SPECIFIC FINDINGS OUT OF THE 206 FORMS SUBMITTED IN NEVADA INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING:

REAR FACING SEAT

• Number of rear-facing seats - 82
• Overall incorrect use of rear facing seats - 86.6%
• Avoiding errors of incorrectly used rear-facing seat - 3.2
• Number of recalled rear-facing seats - 4

FORWARD-FACING SEAT w/Harness

BELT POSITIONING BOOSTER (No Harness)

SHIELD BOOSTER/LAPTOP

VEHICLE SAFETY BELT

According to NHTSA, as many as 80 percent of child safety seats are incorrectly used and the newly required LATCH system will eliminate as much as half of the misuse associated with the improper installation of child safety seats.

Though the LATCH restraint system is easy to use and keeps children secure, child safety seats without LATCH technology are still effective in protecting children as long as they are correctly installed in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions.

For more information please call Eric Guevin at (775) 858.5700.

REMSA is a private, not-for-profit emergency medical services system serving northern Nevada and northern California. REMSA’s state of the art 9-1-1 dispatch communications center is internationally accredited, as are all emergency medical transport services of the company. REMSA provides quality patient care with no taxpayer support or other subsidies.

450 Edison Way Reno, Nevada 89502 (775)858-5700 Fax (775)858-5720