Free car seat checkup helped ensure child safety

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTHI) - CHANCES for Indiana Youth teamed up with Dollar Tree on Hwy 46 in Terre Haute, and helped parents and caregivers make sure their child safety seats were properly installed in their vehicles.

Certified technicians were there from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Saturday, October 6 at Dollar Tree by the east side Walmart on Hwy 46 in Terre Haute.

“To get the most benefit from the check-up, parents should be sure to bring the child as well as their car seat,” said Alia Hazel, certified child passenger safety technician. “Also”, Hazel added, “many parents don’t realize that a child needs to be in an appropriate car seat until their 8th birthday according to Indiana Law.”

According to Hazel, parents and caregivers should follow a few basic guidelines for determining which restraint system is best suited to protect their children in a vehicle.

Seventy-three percent of car seats are not being used correctly. To find out why, Safe Kids analyzed data from more than 100,000 car seat inspections. The data revealed that parents and caregivers still have some work to do to ensure their children are restrained properly

Car Seat Checkup Checklist

• Right Seat. Check the label on your car seat to make sure it’s appropriate for your child’s age, weight and height. Like milk, your car seat has an expiration date. Just double check the label on your car seat to make sure it is still safe.
• Right Place. Kids are VIPs, just ask them. We know all VIPs ride in the back seat, so keep all children in the back seat until they are 13.
• Right Direction. You want to keep your child in a rear-facing car seat for as long as possible, usually until around age 2. When he or she outgrows the seat, move your child to a forward-facing car seat. Make sure to attach the top tether after you tighten and lock the seat belt or lower anchors. Continue to use a booster seat until your child properly fits in the seat belt, usually when they are between the ages of 8 and 12.
• Inch Test. Once your car seat is installed, give it a good shake at the base. Can you move it more than an inch side to side or front to back? A properly installed seat will not move more than an inch.
• Pinch Test. Make sure the harness is tightly buckled and coming from the correct slots (check car seat manual). Now, with the chest clip placed at armpit level, pinch the strap at your child’s shoulder. If you are unable to pinch any excess webbing, you’re good to go.