CBS Los Angeles: Family Road Trips Gone… SAFE.

Summer vacation means… family road trips! (Cue ‘Are we there yet…’)

I remember family road trips as a kid; 3-hour drives to the beach from my hometown of Fresno, CA, my sister and I arguing over one of our arms touching our ‘side’ of the backseat… you know, the usual kid stuff. Do I remember wearing seat belts? Nope. Do I remember being in a car seat or booster? Nope. Do I remember my parents telling us to be quiet in the backseat or else they were going to pull over the side of the road and let us out because we were being too noisy? YUP. (Hey, a noisy car leads to a distracted driver… which leads to major danger. So I see their point.)

In an effort to break down a few safety tips for road travel (and also in the name of June being National Safety Month), here are a few reminders for traveling with a young family in tow.

NOTE: The exact, correct position of the chest clip is not completely accurate as shown in this video.

Certified Safety Technician and Founder & CEO of The Tot Squad Jennifer Beall Saxton stresses the importance of making sure your child is in the correct car seat according to their age & weight (kids in California under the age of 2 should be in a rear facing seat). Seats should be secured tightly in the car, using the latch and tether system OR the seatbelt (never both). The buckled chest clip should sit right on top of the breastbone (between the child’s shoulders).

Most importantly, stow your phone out of reach while behind the wheel. The National Safety Council estimates that 26% of crashes are caused by distracted driving.

For additional information about car seat safety, visit SaferCar.gov or the following links:

http://www.safekids.org/checklist/car-seat-checklist-parents-pdf

http://www.safercar.gov/parents/carseats/How-To-Install-Car-Seat-Tips.htm

Car seat cleaning & additional installation help can also be found at http://thetotsquad.com/

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