Parents and guardians in Ireland are being urged to make use of the Road Safety Authority’s (RSA) ‘Check it Fits’ service.
The service, which aims to put parents’ and guardians’ minds at ease that their child’s car seat is safely and securely fitted, was launched in response to a frightening statistic that shows that over half of child car seats are incorrectly fitted.
By 30 September this year, the RSA team had checked 4,535 child car seats at 98 events and found less than half – 46 per cent – of the seats were fitted correctly.
“Children are among the most vulnerable people in our society, and no parent or guardian would knowingly put a child’s life in danger,” said Sam Waide, Chief Executive of the RSA.
“However, an alarming number of parents allow their children to travel in vehicles without being properly restrained, placing their lives and safety at risk. I encourage parents and guardians to avail of our expert service. It could save your child’s life.”
RSA research shows there were 34 children aged 15 and younger killed on Irish roads and a further 592 seriously injured during the five-year period 2019-2023. This age group represented four per cent of total fatalities, and eight per cent of total serious injuries during the period.
