PRECIOUS CARGO

Our kids are precious cargo. As parents we do everything we can to keep our kids safe, especially when they are in the car. I know I do. We have several car seats and booster seats. We make sure our kids are buckled up before we go anywhere and stress the first thing that they should do when they get in the car, before doing anything else, is buckle up. So today when I noticed a little boy in the back seat of a car, with an adult, not in a car seat and not even buckled up I was shocked. I was stunned. I couldn't believe what I was seeing because I didn't know that anyone still did that anymore. Here was this child walking around in the back seat, even sitting on the woman's lap in the back seat. What I now regret is that I didn't pull over to report this vehicle to the police. I was just shocked and not thinking clearly.

But in an effort to at least pass on the story and a few tips to help with car seat safety for parents, I am writing this post with several tips and pieces of advice from a friend and police officer. Sergeant Tim Burrows of Toronto Traffic Services has written several blog posts about this topic and I am going add his link and a few of his key tidbits of information.

From Sgt. Burrows....

There are three important gauges to consider which child safety system is best for your children.

• Age
• Height
• Weight

All children must be in one form of safety seat. Infant rear facing/forward facing, toddler forward facing and child booster.

The driver of a motor vehicle is responsible for occupants under the age of 16 to be restrained properly. As the driver you may be charged with several offences for not having the occupants restrained. In Ontario there is a simple law that applies, one person, one seat belt.

Sgt. Burrows and his colleagues offer great tips and advice to keep everyone in your family safe on the roads so it is worth checking out their traffic services blog