Top 5 travel tips to help kids stay injury free during the holidays

RALEIGH, NC (December 18, 2017)…Holiday travel can be filled with a lot of fun memories for kids – road trips with the entire family, visits to grandma and grandpa’s house and more. Since road injuries are the leading cause of preventable deaths and injuries to children in North Carolina, Safe Kids North Carolina offers some simple travel tips to help keep the holiday fun and injury free.

1. Check your car seat before holiday travel.  73% of car seats are not used or installed correctly, so before you hit the road, check your car seat. If you have questions or concerns, certified child passenger safety technicians are able to help install or ensure the seat is correctly installed.

2. Use booster seats. Kids who have outgrown a forward-facing harness seat are not ready yet for a seat belt or the front seat. They are safest in a booster seat that enables the adult seat belt to fit properly. Even when children have graduated from booster seats, they should remain in the back seat until they reach the age of 13.

3. Bulky coats and car seats don’t mix.  If it’s cold outside, cover babies and young children with a thick blanket to keep them warm after they’re securely strapped into their seat. Bulky winter clothes and coats can keep a car seat from correctly doing its job.

4. Have an exit strategy.  If you need to change a diaper or feed your children, take the time to safely stop at the nearest exit to do so. Stopping along the roadway can be hazardous to the occupants in your car or the vehicles that need to pass you.

5. Remember the car seat for air travel.  If you plan to travel by air this holiday season, be sure to bring your child’s car seat onto the plane. Check to ensure the car seat is labeled “certified for use in motor vehicles and aircraft.” For babies and toddlers, this is the safest way to travel.

To learn more safety tips for children, visit: http://www.safekids.org/safetytips

About Safe Kids North Carolina
Safe Kids North Carolina is dedicated to preventing childhood injury, the number one cause of death for children in North Carolina. For more information, contact Director Shannon Bullock at 919.647.0081 or Shannon.Bullock@ncdoi.gov.