AIR BAGS – WHY WORRY?

Air bags were first introduced in 1985, and now most new cars have passenger air bags fitted as standard in the front passenger seat. They have reduced the fatalities from car crashes by 11% overall and by 30% in head on collisions.

BUT in order to be effective, they have to explode in a fraction of a second with the speed and force of a 70 kg man hurtling towards the dashboard in a high-speed crash.

This means that they are dangerous for short people and children who have their heads at the height of the air bag. Children are not as strong as adults, and more likely to be thrown forwards in a crash so their heads are nearer the air bag. Children in rear-facing baby seats are particularly vulnerable as their heads are already much closer to the explosive force of the air bag.

In America, statistics have shown that in children under 13 years, air bags have INCREASED the fatality rate in car crashes, and the force of the air bag’s release has decapitated at least one child. Whilst American air bags are larger than European ones, and explode after more minor crashes, we need to be aware of the dangers for small children to prevent fatalities here. There have been child deaths caused by air bags in other countries, including Australia.

Children who are correctly restrained by a three-point seat belt are much less likely to be injured by an air bag, and in the 45 child deaths caused by air bags in America in the last 10 years, only 5 children were correctly restrained, so using seat belts correctly makes travelling in a seat with an air bag much safer.

There is also concern for pregnant women whose bump may be hit by an air bag.

The government and car manufacturers are not being quick to address this problem as the air bags do save a lot of young adults’ lives and these are the people most frequently killed in car crashes. There is talk of ‘smart’ air bags that recognise a passenger’s weight and reduce their force accordingly, but these are not being fitted in cars yet.

Car manufacturers all put warnings about not carrying children in the front seat and ALL cars say children in rear-facing seats should NEVER go in the passenger seat if there are air bags fitted in the car.

Unfortunately air bags can sometimes be deployed in minor traffic crashes, such as a car sliding into you at traffic lights, so even on a short school run children should be correctly positioned in the car.

HOW TO KEEP YOUR CHILDREN SAFE FROM AIR BAGS

1. NEVER put rear-facing seats in the front of the car if there are air bags fitted. Their heads are very near the air bag and the force can be fatal for their small bodies.   
2. Children under 13 years should not go in the front seat if at all possible if there are air bags fitted. The safest seats are ones with three point seat belts in the rear of the car. Probably the safest seat is behind the driver.   
3. The majority of air bag deaths occur when children are not strapped in correctly. If your child has to travel in the front seat, make sure that the three-point belt fits over their shoulder and not their neck, and that any children’s car seats that have been fitted in the car are securely fitted and cannot rock forwards on impact. Also push the passenger seat back so the child’s body is away from the dashboard. Tilting the car’s seat back slightly also helps, and make sure that the child keeps still and does not wriggle out of the seat belt, pick things up from the floor, lean forwards to adjust the radio etc.   
4. In the back of the car use the three-point seat belts in preference to a lap belt. If a lap belt is used, secure it firmly across the top of the thighs (and not the soft stomach), so that the child’s legs are tight against the seat. Lap belts do not stop the head shooting forwards in a crash, but are safer than no belt, as they stop children being thrown out of the car, which used to be a common cause of car crash deaths.

Adults should leave 10” (25cm) between the steering wheel and their body. Pregnant women should push the seat back as far as possible and tilt it back. They must use a three-point seat belt and put the lower portion under their bump across their hipbones, and put the shoulder portion over their collarbone and between their breasts. Special seat belt adaptors for pregnant women are available.

Air bags can be disabled but a lot of garages won’t do it, and insurance companies may not cover cars where this has been done, as they may be sued if an adult is subsequently hurt in the front seat. In America you need special government permission to disable air bags, for example if your child has a medical condition needing constant monitoring so that the mother can watch them in the front seat.

SEAT BELT LAW

Seat belts were introduced in 1967.

The compulsory wearing of seat belts in the front seats became law in 1983.

All new cars have been fitted with rear seat belts since 1987.

If fitted, children under 14 years have had to wear rear seat belts since 1989 and all people since 1991.

CURRENT SEAT BELT LAW RELATING TO CHILDREN

Children less than three years old must be in a child seat suitable for their age.

Children over the age of three years can be restrained in any way but must wear the seat belt if this is all that is available – so if you don’t have an age-appropriate child seat for a child aged three to twelve years, they must wear a seat belt.

Children less than one year of age can be transported in a carrycot with approved restraining straps in the back seat.

Children less than twelve years of age must wear a seat belt if it is available anywhere in the car. This means that if there are no rear seatbelts, they MUST sit in the front seat if it has a seat belt.

The driver is legally responsible for making sure that children under 14 years of age wear a seat belt.

Minibuses carrying more than three children must be fitted with seat belts, but this is not true for coaches.

WHICH CAR SEAT AT WHICH AGE?

A good guide is provided by The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, which also gives advice on British standards for different types.

Generally:

1. Rear facing baby seats are suitable up to age nine months or 10kg in weight and should never be put in the front seat if air bags are fitted.
2. Carrycots with restraining straps can be used up to nine months or 10kg in the rear seat only BUT they are not as safe as car seats.
3. Forward-facing children’s seats can be used from nine months to four years with booster seats or seats for older children used from four to six years. Most booster seats in the UK are designed for children who weigh 9 to 25 kg.
4. Booster cushions can be used for older children from age six to eleven years. Generally the child should be raised or the seat belt lowered (you can use a special clip-on attachment to do this) so that the seat belt sits comfortably across the chest and not near the neck. Adult seat belts can be worn when the child reaches 150cm in height.
5. There are also devices that snap onto the seat belt to stop the shoulder portion lying across the child’s neck. They can be used alone or in conjunction with a booster seat depending on the age of the child.
6. Clips are available to stop your child undoing a seat belt.

FURTHER INFORMATION

See the Seat Belts Information Sheet from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, and Road Safety Factsheet.

Also read Children and Air Bags and Fatality Reduction By Air Bags: Analyses Of Accident Data Through Early 1996.