1car1 UK Car Rental News

Your Responsibilities.
 
The law requires all children travelling in cars to use an appropriate child restraint or adult seat belt, with very few exceptions, which are listed below. It is the driver’s responsibility to ensure that children under the age of 14 years are retrained correctly in accordance with the law.

Children up to 3 years old.
           
In the front seat.
The child must use the correct restraint. It is illegal to carry a child in a rear facing restraint in the front seat or a car protected by an active passenger airbag.
 
In the rear seat.
The child must use the correct restraint.
 
In a licensed taxi or private hire car.
If a child restraint not available then the child may travel unrestrained in the rear. This is the only exception for children under 3 years old, and has been introduced for practical rather than safety reasons. You should always think about ways to make sure that a child restraint is available.
 
It is the driver’s legal responsibility to ensure that the child is correctly restrained.
 
Children aged 3 years and above.
 
In the front seat
The child must use the correct child restraint.
 
In the rear seat.
The child must use the correct restraint, where seat belts are fitted.
 
There are three exceptions where there is not a child restraint available. In each case the child must use the adult belt instead. They are –
 
In a licensed taxi or private hire vehicle.
 
If the child is travelling on a short journey for reason of unexpected necessity.
 
If there are two occupied child restraints in the rear which prevent the use of a third.
 
In addition, a child of 3 years or over may travel unrestrained in the rear of a vehicle if seat belts are not available.
 
It is the driver’s legal responsibility to ensure that the child is correctly restrained.
 
Children over 1.35 metres in height, or who are 12 or 13 years old.
 
In the front seat.
The adult seat belt must be worn if available.
 
In the rear seat.
The adult seat belt must be worn if available.
 
It is the driver’s legal responsibility to ensure that the child is correctly restrained.
 
Passengers over 14 years old.
 
In the front seat.
The adult seat belt must be worn if available.
 
In the rear seat.
The adult seat belt must be worn if available.
 
It is the responsibility of the individual passenger to ensure that they are wearing the seat belt.
 
 
Other Vehicles (Vans, buses, coaches, minibuses and good vehicles).
 
In the front seat.
The law requires all children and adults travelling in the front of all of the above vehicles to use and appropriate child restraint or adult seat belt.
 
In the rear seat.
Passengers sitting in the rear of minibuses and coaches must wear the seat belts that are provided. It is the driver’s responsibility to ensure that –
 
Children under 3 years old use an appropriate child restraint if available.
 
Children aged between 3 and 11 years old or under 1.35 metres tall use an appropriate child restraint if available, or if not available, wear the adult seat belt, if available.
 
Children aged 12 and 13 years or above 1.35 metres tall use the adult seat belt, if available.
 
Passengers who are over the age of 14 are legally responsible for wearing a seat belt themselves
 
Child safety Do’s and Dont’s.
 

Do
·          Use only an approved restraint suitable for the child’s weight and size.
·          Use restraints approved to the latest standard, (UNECE Regulation 44.03) – these fit better in modern cars and provide improved protection for your child.
·          Ensure that the restraint is compatible with your car. Check the seat manufacturer’s application list, ask the retailer to demonstrate or install the seat, or ask for advice from the car manufacturer.
·          Make sure that the restraint is fitted securely and firmly in the car – follow the instructions and retain them in the car for future reference.
·          Carry children in the rear seat of the car if possible.
·          Adjust the harness for a tight but comfortable fit each time your child uses the seat.
·          Check the restraint installation regularly to ensure that fixing straps or seatbelts have not worked loose.
·          Check the restraint condition regularly and renew it if there are any signs of cracking in the shell or of fraying or cuts in webbing.
·          Ensure that your child understands the importance of being safely strapped in for every journey.
·          Cover the seat when parking on hot days to avoid burning the child on hot metal fittings when you return.
 
Dont
·          Carry children unrestrained, no matter how short the journey.
·          Fit a rear-facing baby seat in the front seat of a car with a passenger airbag - death or serious injury can result. Forward-facing seats should be set well back from the airbag.
·          Buy a restraint unless you are certain that it will fit properly in your car. No ‘universal restraint’ fits correctly in all cars.
·          Buy a second hand restraint unless you know its history and it is complete with all its instructions.
·          Use a restraint that has been involved in a crash.
·          Hold a child in your arms or put the seatbelt around both of you. In an accident your weight will crush your child.
·          Allow children to release buckles or climb out of belts.
·          Modify child seats or buckles – this could have serious consequences in an accident.
·          Use an ordinary cushion instead of a booster cushion. In an accident it could fly out and the child could slide under the seat belt.
·          Leave your children unattended in a car.
 
Extreme Hazard Warning
Rear-facing infant carriers must not be used on a front-passenger seat where a passenger airbag is fitted. The close proximity of the restraint to the airbag could result in a severe injury or death to the child if the bag inflates.