Fact Or Fiction
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Fact or Fiction A Child Passenger Safety CEU Presentation As Child Passenger Safety (CPS) technicians/instructors, we have to stay current in a field that is constantly changing. New technologies in both vehicles and car seats require that we continuously re-educate ourselves. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 2 Fact or Fiction? It is acceptable to use both, LATCH lower attachments and the vehicle seat belt to install a harnessed car seat. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 3 Both Fact and Fiction Nearly all car seat manufacturer’s prohibit the use of both the seat belt and lower anchors. HOWEVER, NUNA’s Pipa infant seat allows the use of both lower anchors and seat belt – at the same time. Always refer to both the car seat and vehicle manufacturer advice as there are exceptions. Source: 2013 LATCH Manual May 2013 Fact or Fiction 4 Fact or Fiction? An infant seat carrying handle must always be in the down position while using it in a vehicle. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 5 Fiction Most rear-facing only car seats allow the handle to be locked in a variety of positions when in use in a vehicle. Some rear-facing only car seats instruct that the handle is to be, or can be, left in the upright “carry” position in the vehicle. Always carefully read the car seat’s instructions to confirm the handle positions allowed An Example from the Chicco KeyFit 30 User Guide by the car seat manufacturer. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 6 Fact or Fiction? It is considered a misuse if the car seat has a tether strap and the vehicle has a top tether anchor but neither is being used in a forward-facing installation. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 7 Fact It is considered best practice to use the top tether when installing a forward-facing car seat. The top tether should be used whether installing using the seat belt or lower anchors. It works with either system and should be used. A properly used tether whether used with a seat belt of LATCH lower anchorage can reduce reduce serious injuries because it significantly limits how much a child’s head moves forward in a crash. It reduces the likelihood of head and spinal cord injury. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 8 Fact or Fiction? It is acceptable to place a locking clip on the side opposite the latch plate. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 9 Unless instructed otherwise Fiction by the manufacturer, place the locking clip no more than 1 inch from the buckle. If the locking clip binds against the frame or shell of the car seat and it cannot be moved closer to the latch plate, move the clip just far enough away from the latch plate so that it rests just inside the frame or shell. Remember that all vehicles model year 1996 or newer must have either a locking latch plate or a locking Locking Clip retractor. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 10 Fact or Fiction? Always use a top tether for a rear-facing convertible car seat if there is an anchor point in the vehicle. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 11 Fiction Currently, four car seat manufacturers in the U.S. allow optional rear-facing tethering on some models: Britax, Clek, Combi and Diono. Tethers designed for forward-facing should never be used when the convertible seat is in the rear-facing position unless explicitly permitted in the car seat manufacturer’s instructions. The tether strap on a convertible car seat should be stowed securely when the car seat is used rear-facing. Source: 2013 LATCH Manual May 2013 Fact or Fiction 12 Fact or Fiction? The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) must certify that every child restraint meet Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 213 before they go to market. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 13 Fiction What is FMVSS 213? NHTSA does not certify car seats before they go to This rule provides car seat performance standards for children up market. to 65 lbs. Some standards include: Car seat manufacturers Crashworthiness self-certify their products Labeling and instructions Flammability as meeting NHTSA Buckle release pressure performance standards. NHTSA randomly tests car seats on vehicle bench seats NHTSA conducts random in 30 mph frontal crashes involving crash test dummies. compliance tests. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 14 Fact or Fiction? All vehicles have been required to have a pre-crash locking seat belt feature, either at the retractor or the latch plate since Model Year 2000. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 15 Fiction They have been required since model year 1996. In vehicles made before 1996, seat belts were not federally required to provide the pre-crash locking feature. Some did, but it was purely voluntary on the part of the manufacturer. Take-away Message: ◦ If you are working in a car model year 1996 or newer, start at the latch plate to see if it locks. If it doesn’t, the retractor will. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 16 Fact or Fiction? As a technician or parent, you should always use your knee in the car seat to tighten it. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 17 Fiction The weight of an adult hand on the car seat should be enough to tighten the car seat in place. It is recommended to use the weaker hand so as not to use more force than necessary. Britax specifically requests that the vehicle seat NOT be compressed with it’s new Click Tight technology found on the Frontier 90 and Pinnacle 90. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 18 Fact or Fiction? An emergency locking retractor (ELR) cannot be used to install a car seat without an approved additional step or locking latchplate. What is an ELR? A retractor on a seat belt system that locks in response to rapid deceleration of the vehicle. ELRs respond to rapid extraction of the belt or the sudden deceleration of the vehicle or both. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 19 Fact Vehicles where neither the retractor nor the latch plate stay locked need an additional approved step to lock the car seat in place pre-crash: ◦ Locking clip/lockoff ◦ Belt shortening clip ◦ Flip latchplate (used when the locking latchplate is in an unlocked unparalleled position) ◦ Twist buckle stalk (used when the locking latchplate is in an unlocked unparalleled position) May 2013 Fact or Fiction 20 Fact or Fiction? It is acceptable to twist a buckle stalk as many times as necessary to fix an incompatibility issue. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 21 Fiction The maximum number of twists is . The number was agreed upon by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) Child Restraint subcommittee based on IMMI data. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 22 Fact or Fiction? It is best practice to always use the top tether for a forward-facing car seat – whether using the lower anchors or the seat belt. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 23 Fact For forward-facing car seats, use of a tether is recommended, whenever possible, by car seat and vehicle manufacturers. However, use of this protective feature is technically optional in the U.S. A top tether holds the back of the car seat firmly against the vehicle seat to make it more secure and reduce the amount of forward and side movement. A top tether can reduce the distance that the child’s head moves forward by 4 to 6 inches, lessening the risk of head injuries in a crash and provide more protection for children. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 24 Fact or Fiction? It is the law in Illinois that a child under the age of 13 cannot ride in the front seat if there are active air bags. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 25 Fiction The Illinois law does not specify what age a child can ride in the front seat. NHTSA recommends that all children under the age of 13 ride in the back seat to avoid contact with the frontal air bag system. It is best practice for children under the age of 13 to ride in the back seat. If a child must ride in the front seat make sure that the seat is as far away from the air bag as possible. If there is an on/off switch for the air bag, make sure it is turned off. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 26 Fact or Fiction? When finding the correct car seat for a child, you should only be concerned with the child’s height and weight. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 27 Fiction It is important to place children in car seats based on more than just their weight and height. These factors all need to be considered: 1. Age 2. Weight 3. Height 4. Physical Needs 5. Behavioral Needs May 2013 Fact or Fiction 28 Fact or Fiction? If the angle of a rear-facing seat needs adjusted, only three pool noodles may be used to correct the angle. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 29 Fiction Your National Child Passenger Safety Certification Training Program student manual says if the car seat doesn’t have an adjustable base, a firm, lightweight object (tightly rolled towel or pool noodles) can be placed at the vehicle seat crack or bight. Use as few as possible to achieve the correct angle. Read the car seat instructions prior to using a noodle as some manufacturer’s, such as CHICCO, do not allow the use of noodles with their seats. May 2013 Fact or Fiction 30 Fact or Fiction? If a child is born under 5 lbs., they MUST use a car bed until they are 5 lbs.