NHTSA ANNOUNCES SAFETY RECALL OF BRITAX CHILD SAFETY SEATS

NHTSA
July 17, 2000

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
NHTSA 30-00
Monday, July 17, 2000
Contact: NHTSA, Tim Hurd, (202) 366-9550

The U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) today announced a safety recall of Britax child safety seats.

The recall involves 9,922 Roundabout convertible safety seats manufactured between Jan. 13, 1999, and March 14, 1999, that do not comply with the federal safety standard for child safety seats.

The shells for these seats were improperly molded during manufacture and could allow a child's head to move farther forward in a crash than allowed by Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 213, "Child Restraint Systems." The fault is an inadequate bond in the area of the harness adjuster attachment. In a crash, excessive head movement could permit a child's head to strike part of the vehicle, causing injury.

Britax has developed a shoulder pad kit that can be easily installed by the owner. Consumers who returned a registration card to Britax will automatically receive a free remedy kit. Owners who did not submit a registration card should call Britax at (888) 427-4829 to obtain a free repair kit. Customers should not return their safety seats to retailers because retailers do not have the remedy kits.

"Parents should obtain and install the repair kit as soon as possible, so that the child seat provides maximum protection for the child," said NHTSA Deputy Administrator Rosalyn Millman. "Parents and caregivers should properly restrain children in the back seat for every trip."

Millman advised parents to continue to use the seat while waiting to receive and install the repair kit because it will still provide better protection than an adult seat belt or no restraint.

For more information, owners can call (888) 427-4829, or write to Britax Child Safety, Inc., 460-R Greenway Industrial Drive, Fort Mill, S.C. 29708.

Consumers with questions about this or any other safety recall campaign should call NHTSA's toll-free Auto Safety Hotline at 1-888-DASH-2-DOT (1-888-327-4236).