MEDIA RELEASE

The week of (September 15-21) has been designated National Child Passenger Safety Week, and the HawaiÊ»i Police Department will be participating in the enforcement efforts. While HawaiÊ»i Police Department officers are conducting traffic stops, they will be checking that children are properly secured in car seats or booster seats appropriate for their size and age. If occupants don’t have seatbelts or child safety seats being used correctly, the driver of the vehicle will receive citations for all people not safely restrained. These fines can be very expensive, the first offense alone can be $100, and the court will require the driver to attend a Child Passenger Restraint System Class. 

Fines are costly, but losing a child far exceeds any fine you might receive. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration car crashes are still the leading cause of death for children. In 2017, every 32 seconds, one child under the age of 13 was killed while riding in passenger vehicles. In passenger cars, car seats reduce the risk of fatal injury by 71 percent for infants and by 54 percent for toddlers. For infants and toddlers in light trucks, the corresponding reductions were 58 percent and 59 percent, respectively. Most parents are confident that they have correctly installed their child’s car seat, but in most cases (59%) the seat has not been installed correctly. According to NHTSA data, in 2015, about 25.8 percent of children 4 to 7 were prematurely moved to seat belts, when they should have been riding in booster seats.

At first, it may seem a bit confusing which seat to use, but if you need assistance, please stop by a local Police or Fire station and ask if someone could help. The Traffic Services Section is open Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. to-4:30 p.m. and we are always glad to help with questions and safety seat inspections. Please call 961-2305 with any concerns.