The Susanville Police Department is joining law enforcement agencies, public health departments and other community organizations to raise awareness about the importance of keeping children in the correct car seat for their age and size.
During Child Passenger Safety Week, the SPD encourages all parents and caregivers to make sure their children are riding safely by using the correct car seats, booster seats and properly fitted seat belts. This annual campaign takes place from Sept. 21-27.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, nearly half of car seats (46 percent) are misused. Properly installed car seats have been shown to reduce fatal injury crashes by 71 percent for infants under a year old and by 54 percent for toddlers ages 1 through 4.
California law requires all children under 2 years old to ride in a rear-facing car seat, unless the child is 40 or more pounds or is 40 or more inches tall. Once a child reaches these milestones, all children under the age of 8 years old are still required to be secured in a car seat or booster seat, in the back seat. Children 8 and older, or who are at least 4 feet 9 inches tall, may be secured by a booster seat, but at a minimum must be secured by a safety belt.
Parents and caregivers are encouraged to keep children in the proper rear or forward-facing seat as long as possible and use the “Five-Step Test” to determine if their child is big enough to safely use a seat belt without a booster seat.
Click here for more information from the California Department of Public Health.
To schedule a free child safety seat inspection, contact your local CHP Area Office.
Funding for this program is provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
