Protection plea for children

Press, 4 August 1983, Page 12

Protection plea for children

Children aged between eight and 14 who travel in rear car seats are the most poorly protected of all passengers in accidents, a Ministry of Transport survey has found. A Ministry safety researcher, Dr I. C. Appleton, said the use of passenger restraints had increased for all ages in the last few years except for older children in rear car seats. Less than a third of children aged between eight and 14 had seat belts available in the rear seat of the cars surveyed. Only 12 per

cent used them. Results of the survey done in Christchurch, Wellington, and Auckland last December have yet to be published. Nearly all cars had front seat belts, which were used by most passengers. However, about three-quarters of children rode in the rear seat. Dr Appleton said it was worth considering extra legal requirements for seat belts, to protect those children. “An argument against doing that is it is going

to happen in time anyway, but what about now?” he said. New cars registered since November, 1979, must have rear seat belts, but Dr Appleton said the change, as older cars were scrapped, could take longer than first thought. Evidence suggested that children rode in mostly older cars. One possibility was making car dealers fit rear seat belts in any car they sold. That would make the cost more acceptable by building it into the car purchase price.