Burlington County offering free child safety seat checks every Wednesday.
Residents are reminded that free checks of child safety seat installations are offered by the Burling County Sheriff’s Department every Wednesday from 10am to 2pm and 5pm to 8pm in the parking lot of the county administration building on Rancocas Road in Mt. Holly.
“With Child Passenger Safety Week coming up next month, it is important for our residents to know that these services are available to them year round,” said Sheriff Jean Stanfield. “Our Child Passenger Safety Seat Program conducts hands-on training for parents and caregivers to ensure that their children’s safety seats are properly installed.”
The Burlington County Child Passenger Safety Program has inspected over 13,000 child safety seats since its start 16 years ago. During in the last year only 8 percent of the seats checked were installed correctly. This 92 percent misuse rate for Burlington County is higher than the national average of 73 percent reported by Safe Kids USA.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, research on the effectiveness of child safety seats shows their use can reduce fatalities for children under one-year-old by 71 percent and for toddlers (ages 1 to 4) by 54 percent. If used properly a child safety restraint can reduce the need for hospitalization among children 4 years of age and under by 69 percent.
For more information please call the Child Safety Seat Information Line (609) 265–5221 or visit the Burlington County webpage.
