Massachusetts Crash Fatality Facts

• 430 people died in Massachusetts crashes in 2006
• 53% were not wearing seatbelts
• 40% (174) were alcohol related
• 34% (148) were speed related
• 21% (91) occurred at intersections
• 14% (61) were pedestrians
• 12% (50) were motorcycle riders
• 1% (6) were bicycle riders

Child safety seats and booster seats save lives. They offer the best protection for children in the event of a crash.

• According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, approximately 8,325 lives have been saved by the proper use of child restraints during the past 30 years.
• In 2006, among children under age 5, an estimated 425 lives were saved; 392 were associated with child safety seats and 32 with the use of adult seat belts.
• Child seats reduce the likelihood of an infant (under 1 year old) being killed in a vehicle crash by 71 percent and the risk of a toddler (1 through 4 years old) being killed by 54 percent.
• Children ages 4 through 7 who use booster seats are 59 percent less likely to be injured in a car crash than children who are restrained only by seat belts, according to a study by Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
• All 50 States, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico have laws requiring children to be restrained in vehicles.

Child restraints work best when used correctly.

• Three out of four child safety seats are improperly installed according to research by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
• Failure to read the child safety seat instructions, in addition to vehicle owner manual instructions regarding installation, could result in serious injury or death as a result of a failure of the child safety seat to be securely or properly restrained.
• In 2007, 98 percent of America’s infants and 96 percent of children ages 1 to 3 were regularly restrained. For children ages 4 to 7 it’s 85 percent, according to a 2007 National Occupant Protection Use Survey by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
• In 2007, the National Survey of the Use of Booster Seats found that only 37 percent of children ages 4 to 7 were riding in booster seats; NHTSA recommends that children who have outgrown their child safety seats should ride in booster seats until they are at least 8 years old, unless they are 4’9” tall.

For maximum child passenger safety, parents and caregivers should refer to the following 4 Steps for Kids guidelines for determining which restraint system is best suited to protect children based on their ages and sizes:

1. For the best possible protection keep infants in the back seat, in rear-facing child safety seats, as long as possible up to the height or weight limit of the particular seat. At a minimum, keep infants rear-facing until at least age 1 and at least 20 pounds.
2. When children outgrow their rear-facing seats (at least age 1 and at least 20 pounds) they should ride in forward-facing child safety seats, in the back seat, until they reach the upper weight or height limit of the particular seat (usually around age 4 and 40 pounds).
3. Once children outgrow their forward-facing seats (usually around age 4 and 40 pounds), they should ride in booster seats, in the back seat, until the vehicle seat belts fit properly. Seat belts fit properly when the lap belt lays across the upper thighs and the shoulder belt fits across the chest (usually at age 8 or when the children are 4’9” tall).
4. When children outgrow their booster seats, (usually at age 8 or when they are 4’9” tall) they can use the adult seat belts in the back seat, if they fit properly (lap belt lays across the upper thighs and the shoulder belt fits across the chest).

Content Source: Department of Transportation (US), National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), National Child Passenger Safety Week Program