Study: One-third of kids ride in wrong safety seat

The National Safe Kids Campaign's report shows that 63 percent of children who should be in booster seats were improperly restrained.

By Julie Vallese
CNN

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The most comprehensive study of behavior and use of child safety seats ever completed has found a third of children are riding in the wrong seat for their size.

The National Safe Kids Campaign's report, "Child Passengers at Risk in America: A National Study of Restraint Use," released Thursday, also shows 63 percent of children who should be in booster seats were improperly restrained.

In the safety industry, children who should be in booster seats are referred to as the "forgotten children." They are the group too big for infant and toddler seats but too small for the safety system designed for adults.

Booster seats are recommended for children between the ages of 4 and 8 or those who weigh between 40 and 80 pounds.

"Parents still aren't getting it," said Heather Paul, executive director of the National Safe Kids Campaign. "More disturbing is that our study also illustrates that parents of older kids are missing the message that their children should be in booster seats until they are ready for adult safety belts."

According to Safe Kids and other passenger safety groups, children can ride in adult-positioning seat belts only when they can sit with their backs straight against the vehicle's seat cushion, with their knees bent over the vehicle's seat, and without slouching. The shoulder and lap belt should fit comfortably across the shoulder, lower abdomen and pelvic area -- not high on the stomach.

In the observational survey, Safe Kids found 14 percent of children were riding completely unbuckled.

Whether a child is buckled in was also reflected in whether the driver of the vehicle was wearing a seat belt. The study found almost 40 percent of children riding unrestrained were being driven by an adult who was also not wearing a seat belt.

The improper use of child seats or not using them at all have serious consequences. According to the most recent government statistics, inappropriately restrained children are more than three times more likely to suffer a severe injury in a crash, and 56 percent of children killed in vehicle crashes were completely unrestrained.

Each year motor vehicle crashes are blamed for 1,700 deaths of children younger than 14 and another 265,000 injuries. Those statistics make vehicle crashes the leading cause of unintentional injuries and deaths to children younger than 14.

Child passenger laws are on the books in 10 states, and another 19 states have child passenger legislation pending. Seven states have specific language requiring booster seats for some older children.

In conjunction with releasing the report, Safe Kids is calling on states to enact stronger child passenger laws to include all age groups and primary enforcement, educate caregivers about the need to use child seats and the risks of not using them, and support community outreach programs that distribute child safety seats to communities in need.