FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, January 5, 2017
Contacts:
Joe Morrissey [email protected] [1]
Rich Meddaugh [email protected] [2]
New York State DMV and the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee Announce Free Child Car Seat Inspections and Assistance through End of January
Free Inspections Available in Albany, Erie, Livingston and Niagara Counties in early 2017
The New York State Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) [3] and the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee (GTSC) [4] today announced that free child car seat inspections are available to parents and caregivers during the month of January in Albany, Erie, Livingston and Niagara Counties. As part of a year-long safety initiative, state and local law enforcement agencies, along with various community safety partners, are offering free child car seat inspections by certified child passenger safety technicians.
“Learning proper child seat installation allows parents and caregivers to learn safe and effective techniques to keep children safe on New York’s roadways,” said Acting GTSC Chair and DMV Executive Deputy Commissioner Terri Egan. “Working with law enforcement and community partners, we are ensuring the safety and well-being of our children as they travel in vehicles across New York State.”
Trained technicians will use the model of “Learn, Practice, and Explain” to educate each caregiver on how to select a child restraint that will fit their child, fit their vehicle and be used correctly every time. According to Traffic Safety Marketing (TSM), [5] car crashes are a leading cause of death for children 1 to 13 years old. Many deaths and injuries can be prevented by proper use of car seats, boosters and seat belts. Getting safety information and car seat instructions to parents and caregivers is crucial to saving young lives.
The main priority for GTSC’s campaign is to make sure all parents and caregivers are properly trained and securing their children in a car safety restraint (rear-facing, forward-facing, booster seats, and seat belts) appropriate for their age and size, and to ensure the safety restraints are properly used and installed by parents and caregivers.
In 2012, a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) survey found that 20 percent of all drivers of child passengers did not read any instructions on how to properly install their child restraints, yet 90 percent felt “confident” or “very confident” that their car seats and booster seats were installed correctly. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), child safety seats reduce the risk of fatal injury [6] by 71 percent for infants and by 54 percent for toddlers in passenger cars.
Below is a listing of child safety seat checks [7] available across the state for January:
January 7 Child Safety Seat Check - Erie County
2:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Catholic Health of Buffalo
144 Genesee Street, Buffalo, NY 14203
Registration Required
Contact: For Registration: (716) 447-6205
January 11 Child Safety Seat Check - Niagara County
3:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Mt. St. Mary's Hospital
5300 Military Road, Lewiston, NY 14092
Registration Required
Contact: For Registration: (716) 447-6205
January 19 Child Safety Seat Check - Albany County
4:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
State Police - Latham, 760 Troy Schenectady Road, Latham, NY 12110
By appointment only
Contact: (518) 783-3258
January 21 Child Safety Seat Check - Livingston County
10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Lakeville DOT, 5543 Lakeville Road, Geneseo, NY 14454
Agency: Cornell Cooperative Extension of Livingston County
Contact: (585) 991-5420
In addition to car seat inspections, parents and caregivers can view a series of videos [8] produced by NHSTA. The videos, which are available on its website, instruct parents and caregivers how to install rear-facing car seats, forward-facing car seats, and booster seats.
If you cannot attend one of the listed free child car seat inspections, you can make a free appointment with a child seat inspection site near you [9]. Find more information on upcoming child safety seat checks near you [7]. See ratings on all car seats [10].
For more information about DMV, visit dmv.ny.gov [3], or follow the DMV conversation online at Facebook [11] and Twitter [12].
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