SHAWANO, Wis. (WSAU) — Recent traffic crashes involving vehicles with unsecured child safety seats have authorities urging people to make sure the seats are working properly and secured to the vehicle.
Wisconsin State Patrol Trooper Jim Binder says there are statutory guidelines requiring that the seat is firmly held in place and the child is held in it. In the case of a crash, it must keep them in the car and contained in the area where they’re sitting. Wisconsin also has penalties for not properly securing child seats. Binder says there are no points, but the fines are steep. “Violation of child safety restraints, $175 dollars and 30 cents. Second offense goes up to $200 dollars. Third offense is $263.00”
Binder says an adult can put downward pressure on the child seat as they are strapping it in. “The best way to do that is obviously to get an adult, with the child not in the seat, to put their knee on the seat and put their full weight on the seat, and then tighten the safety belt behind it, and then that way when they take their weight back off the seat, it’s firmly held in place, even with a thirty or forty pound child.”
Trooper Binder says the child seats may need to be re-tightened or cleaned occasionally. “They should be checked periodically to make sure they haven’t loosened up, or that debris from the child, toys and such haven’t gotten in and wedged or jammed, or made it inoperable, that kind of thing. I’ve pulled more than one Cheerio out of a buckle clip.”
A crash near Lomira just over a week ago left three children under three years old hospitalized at Milwaukee Children’s Hospital with serious injuries because the seats were not properly secured. Binder also responded to a bad crash a few years ago with loose child seats. “I did have one where they thought the seat was secured in. The belt was not attached at all, in fact, the seat came forward quite a distance. It was a tragic, tragic accident, yes.”
If you have trouble securing a child seat, Binder says not to be afraid to ask. Police departments, State Patrol, community agencies like Red Cross and the YMCA, several hospitals, and child safety organizations offer free help and education on the use of child car seats. Binder says don’t be afraid to ask for help, because it could save your child’s life.
