Recommended Restraints
In South Australia alone, nearly 60 child passengers aged 0-16 years are killed or seriously injured each year. Over one third of these are aged 0-7 years.
A further 365 sustain minor injuries every year. Just over 45% of passenger deaths and a quarter of those seriously injured in this age group were not wearing a restraint at the time of the crash.
Research also suggests that children are being moved into bigger seats – or are prematurely graduating to seatbelts alone – when this is not appropriate for their size. Adult seatbelts do not fit properly over a small child’s lap and shoulder, exposing the child’s abdomen and neck to serious injury in the event of a crash. A child that is properly secured in an approved child restraint is less likely to be injured or killed in a car crash than one who is not.
RAA Recommendation
To provide maximum protection for children travelling in vehicles, it is important to choose the right restraint for the child’s size. It is important that a child outgrows one type of restraint before moving to the next type of restraint.
Below you will find the RAA’s recommendation for each age/weight range:
Download the "Right child, right restraint, right time..." fact sheet here.