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80% of New Zealand’s car child safety seats installed incorrectly:
Recent surveys and inspections have shown that around 80 percent of car child safety seats in New Zealand are not fitted and installed correctly. This means that these car child safety seats are at risk of increased danger in the event of a crash.
Learn more about incorrect car seat installation in NZ >
Correct car child safety seats installation is important because the car seat must be able to hold your infant or child in the event of a serious accident.
Risks and statistics associated with incorrect car child safety seats fitting:
The correct fitting of your child’s car safety seats is very important to his/her safety. Statistics show that correct car child safety seat installation can increase survival rates by 70% in infants and 54% in older children in the event of a crash. Statistics also found that 45% of older children were not buckled into their car child safety seats properly.
The most common cause of incorrect car child safety seats installation is the incorrect type of seat for the child’s weight and age. This is followed by incorrect seatbelt installation and incorrect harnerss/latch use.
Over half of drivers surveyed did not have their car child safety seats locked in place with a harness or latch. Without the harness/straps to hold it in place, the car child safety seat can become loose and fly forward in the event of a crash. This can lead to serious injury.
Correct car child safety seat fitting:
In order to be correctly fitted, the car seat must:
- Have the seat belt correctly threaded through seat’s holes, tightened so that the child is restrained correctly.
- Be held in place by the tether (located on the back of the seat) or latches which connect where the base and backrest of the seat meat on each corner.
Correctly installing a car child safety seats :
1. Choose the right seat:
To keep babies safe, they should sit in a rear-facing capsule until they are over a year old, with experts suggesting that children should stay in a rear-facing capsule as long as possible. Some car-seats have detachable infant capsules, making them a great value all-in-one option for when your child grows out of the capsule.
Car seat legal requirements in New Zealand >
2. Choose the right location:
It is a legal requirement that children sit in the back seat rather than the front. Ideally, your child should sit on one of the side seats instead of the middle.
3. Thread the seatbelt through the car seat:
Your car seat should have holes on either side where a seatbelt can pass through, allowing it to be buckled on the other side. Thread the seat belt through the openings, making sure it doesn’t twist as you pull it through.
It is important that you use the correct belt path. Some car seats will have forward facing and rear facing belt paths. Most car child safety seat will have labels that state which path is which.
4. Lock the seat in place with the tether:
The tether is located on the back of most vehicle seats and holds the car seat in place. It is often a square-shaped clip made out of metal or a material thicker than the rest of the seat. Attach the harness (if there is one) from your car child safety seats to the tether, tightening until firm.
5. Fasten the latches:
Car seats that don’t have harnesses use a latch system. Fasten the two latches onto the corners of the seat (where the base and backrest meet),. Tighten the latches by pulling them if necessary. This should keep the car child safety seats in place at all times.
Note: if your car child safety seats has a harness and latches, they should both be used to maximise safety.
Car child safety seat Installation in Hamilton
Do you need a hand installing your car child safety seat correctly or do you need a professional check of its current installation? If so, we are happy to help!
At Grimmer Motors, our friendly, skilled, and qualified mechanics can safely and securely install your car seat, maximising your car child safety seat when you are driving. We can also give you quality advice about what kind of seat is best suited for your child.
If you need a seat with a tether attached, we can install a new seat in your vehicle which easily accommodates tether-based car child safety seats.
For car child safety seat installation in Hamilton, contact Grimmer Motors today!