NHTSA Announces Release of Rule To Create New Child Safety Seat Rating System |
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National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
October 31, 2002
NHTSA 67-02
Thursday, October 31, 2002
Contact: Tim Hurd
Telephone: 202-366-9550
The U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) today announced it has issued a final rule to begin a program for the annual rating of child safety seats based on their ease of use by consumers.
The agency also announced it is launching a pilot testing program in simulated crash situations to better determine how well child safety seats perform, as well as pilot testing in the New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) to determine how well vehicles protect children.
In early 2003, NHTSA will begin posting ease-of-use ratings for child safety seats on the agency's website (www.nhtsa.gov). NHTSA will also publish a brochure listing all of its ease-of-use ratings next year.
Under the new rating system, child safety seats, including booster seats, will each be given an overall ease-of-use rating at the "A," "B" or "C" levels. Such letter grades will also be used to rate seats in each of five categories:
Whether the seat is pre-assembled or requires assembly after purchase.
Clarity of labeling attached to the seat.
Clarity of written instructions on the seat's proper use.
Ease of installation of the seat in a vehicle.
Ease of securing a child correctly in the seat.
"The new child restraint information program provides critical information for consumers. It will help motivate manufacturers to create child restraints that are easier to use, leading to added safety for children," said Dr. Jeffrey W. Runge, the NHTSA Administrator. He stressed that a safety seat can offer the best protection for a child only if it is correctly installed and used.
Dr. Runge also underscored the importance of NHTSA's pilot dynamic testing programs, designed to gather more information about child passenger safety. One such pilot, begun recently, involves the inclusion of child restraints in frontal crash testing of 2003 and 2004 model vehicles. The other pilot, to start by March 2003, will involve performance testing of child safety seats in simulated crash situations.
NHTSA advises parents and other caregivers that all children age 12 and under should ride properly restrained in the back seat. Also:
Infants, from birth to about age one, and weighing up to 20 pounds, should ride in the back seat in a rear-facing seat.
Children at least one year of age and at least 20 pounds may ride forward-facing in the rear seat in an appropriate child restraint.
Children should ride in a child safety seat until they weigh about 40 pounds.
All children who have outgrown child safety seats should be properly restrained in booster seats until they are at least 8 years old, unless they are 4 feet 9 inches tall.
While most parents and caregivers believe they are correctly installing child safety seats, NHTSA research indicates that only about 20 percent do so.
The new child safety seat rating system rule was mandated by the Transportation Recall Enhancement, Accountability, and Documentation (TREAD) Act of 2000. Notice of the rule is posted on the NHTSA website at http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/rules/ and can be reached by clicking on "Notices and Final Rules."
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