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(USGovernment-News.Com, December 31, 2013 ) Columbus – Beginning early 2014 a new rule will require child seat manufacturers to tell parents not to use lower anchors, a federally required child-seat attachment system, if the combined weight of the child and car seat exceeds 65 pounds because the strength of the anchor cannot be guaranteed.
Children ages 3 and up, who should still be in child-safety seats, will not need to use the federally required child-seat attachment. The new rule is an update to a 2001 law that recommended all children up to 65 pounds remain in child seats/boosters however it did not take into account the weight of the car seats.
Child seats typically weigh between 15 and 33 pounds, the new rule necessitates that children as light as 32 pounds may not be about to use a system designed to make the seat safer. The Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH) system is considered easier than a safety belt to tightly secure a child seat.
Nonetheless, LATCH use and awareness is low. According to a study by Safe Kids Worldwide, child-seat checkpoint technicians were using lower anchors only about 40% of the time. Parents used the top tether straps, which prevent head injuries, about 30% of the time.
Parents can assure they are meeting the guidelines by weighing their child and the seat to discover the total weight. If the total is above 65 pounds using the seat belt restraint instead of the LATCH system is recommended. Disconnecting tethers when they’re needed could lead to serious, or fatal, injuries to children during a car crash.
In Ohio children under 4 years of age must be a child safety seat; children between 4 and 8 (or those under 57” tall) in a booster seat. The American Academy of Pediatrics suggests children use car seats with harnesses through age 8.
About O’Connor, Acciani & Levy O’Connor, Acciani & Levy is a personal injury law firm with more than 30 years of experience. Comprised of caring and considerate attorneys, the firm’s legal team strives to resolve every case with professionalism while protecting the rights of injury and accident victims in Ohio and Kentucky. With offices in Cincinnati, Anderson, Mason, Hamilton, and Columbus, Ohio and also in Covington, Kentucky, contact O’Connor, Acciani & Levy today for a free, confidential case evaluation by visiting oal-law.com, or by calling (877) 288-3241.
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