South OC Times

During Child Passenger Safety Week, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department is urging parents and caregivers to ensure their children are riding safely by using the correct car seats, booster seats, and properly fitted seat belts. This annual campaign, which runs from September 15-21, aims to raise awareness about the importance of car seat safety and proper installation.

“Every child deserves to travel safely,” said Orange County Sheriff’s Department Sergeant Kyle Ishii. “During Child Passenger Safety Week, we urge all parents and caregivers to take a few minutes to double-check their child’s car seat. Keeping a child in the right seat for their age and size can make all the difference in a crash.”

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), nearly half of car seats (46%) are misused. Properly installed car seats have been shown to reduce fatal injury crashes by 71% for infants under a year old and by 54% for toddlers ages 1 through 4.

California law mandates that all children under 2 years old must ride in a rear-facing car seat unless the child weighs 40 or more pounds or is 40 or more inches tall. Once these milestones are reached, children under the age of 8 years must still be secured in a car seat or booster seat. Children under 8 may not ride in the front seat unless the vehicle lacks a rear, forward-facing seat. Children aged 8 and older, or who are at least 4 feet 9 inches tall, may use a booster seat but must at minimum wear a properly fitted safety belt.

Parents and caregivers are encouraged to keep children in the appropriate 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.

To schedule a free child safety seat inspection, contact your local CHP Area Office.

Funding for distracted driving enforcement is provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.