Child Restraint Use in 2007: Use of Correct Restraint Types; Research note

摘要

In 2007, more children under 1 year old were restrained in rear-facing child safety seats than in 2006 the appropriate child restraint for this age group. This result is from the National Survey of the Use of Booster Seats (NSUBS), the only probability-based nationwide child restraint survey that observes restraint use and collects age, height, and weight information. The NSUBS is conducted by the National Center for Statistics and Analysis of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Although the primary purpose of the NSUBS is to estimate booster seat use, the survey also provides estimates of the extent to which children are prematurely graduated to restraint types that are inappropriate for their height or weight. The 2007 survey found substantial evidence of premature graduation for all restraint types. In the following sections, we present the 2007 findings in three areas: Premature graduation out of rear-facing safety seats; Premature graduation out of front-facing safety seats; and Premature graduation into seat belts.