The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
NEW LAW FOR CAR SEATS
Age, weight limits changing on Oct. 1
NEW HAVEN » A new law that takes effect Oct. 1 will increase the age and weight requirements for car seats, which specialists say will better protect children in the state.
The new law also requires that child restraint systems be equipped with a five-point harness.
“The new provisions bring Connecticut in line with the latest research and best thinking from the leading child safety advocates, both locally and nationwide,” said Fran Mayko, American Automobile Association Northeast public affairs specialist.
With this new law, Connecticut becomes the eighth state to accept the recommendations of the American Academy of Pediatrics that propose children remain in rear-facing child restraints up to age 2.
Dr. Shannon Martinello, a pediatrician in New Haven and Woodbridge, said prior state laws were based on antiquated data, but the laws of any state do not trump the laws of physics.
“Children who are not properly restrained will suffer [injuries] when the forces on their small bodies are not distributed in the most effective manner.” Martinello said. “Heads, and therefore brains, are subject to intense acceleration and deceleration forces even in accidents at fairly low speeds at impact.”
Strengthening laws, by requiring approved restraint devices appropriate for the child’s age, height and weight, reduces injuries and deaths by requiring children who have outgrown car seats to use booster
“Children who are not properly restrained will suffer [injuries] when the forces on their small bodies are not distributed in the most effective manner.” — Dr. Shannon Martinello, pediatrician
seats through age 8 or until seat belts fit properly, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The following are the revised child restraint requirements under the Connecticut measure:
• Any child who is under 2 years old or weighs less than 30 pounds, regardless of age, must be placed in a rear-facing child restraint.
• A child between ages 2 and 4 or weighing between 30 to 39 pounds, regardless of age, must ride in either rear-facing or forward-facing child restraint.
• A child age 5 to 7 or weighing 40 to 59 pounds, regardless of age, must sit in a rear-facing child restraint, a forward-facing child restraint or a booster seat secured by a lap-andshoulder seat belt.
• Any adolescent from 8 through 15 who weighs 60 pounds or more must use an approved child restraint system or a safety seat belt.
Currently, a child only needs to be in a rear-facing child seat until age 1 or 20 pounds. The current law keeps a child in a booster seat until age 6 or 60 pounds.
Jodi Gerstenhaber, a child passenger safety technician instructor, said she believes this bill is a huge advancement in safety for children in Connecticut.
“With this law, that missing age group has been properly addressed, which is a huge victory for those that educate parents like myself,” Gerstenhaber said. “In addition, raising the age for getting out of a booster to age 8 is also a significant step since most children also ‘graduate’ out of a booster too soon before the adult seat belt fits them properly.”
A study of five states found that increasing the age requirement to 7 or 8 years for car seat and booster seat decreased the rate of children who sustained fatal or incapacitating injuries by 17 percent, according to the CDC.
State Rep. Liz Linehan, D-Cheshire, recounts an anecdote of an accident where a young child in a booster seat “flew out of the car” and the child died.
“If they had just been in a five-point harness, that wouldn’t have happened,” Linehan said.
Linehan said countless studies show that fivepoint harnesses and keeping your child rear-facing for as long as possible are just “safer for the child.”
As this bill expands the age and weight requirements of child restraint laws, there is the potential for increased violations and fines, according to the state Office of Fiscal Analysis. While it is unknown how many additional violations will occur, the average cost per violation may end up exceeding those fiscal year of 2016, when it cost an average of approximately $89 per violation.
However, Martinello does not believe the proposed changes will result in additional costs for families regarding the purchase of new child restraint systems as “[families] are simply going to use their rear-facing seats, car seats and booster seats for a longer period of time.”
For example, parents would simply delay turning a child’s rear-facing seat to a forward-facing position until the child is older, bigger and stronger so the child would be more likely to tolerate a collision in the position, Martinello said.
AAA also notes virtually all children properly restrained in a booster seat under Connecticut’s old law can remain in that same seat under the new law.
State resident Ashley Ramage, 38, said buying new car seats could get “pricey” for parents but she understands the need to safeguard children.
“All three of [my children] are tall, so I know they always outgrow the system before they’re supposed to,” she said.
However, as a trauma nurse, Ramage said she sees firsthand what happens when children are not properly restrained.
Even though the revised law is set to take effect Oct. 1, Linehan encourages parents to start early, because “it’s never too early to be safe with your kids.”