Statistics
AAA
Foundation for Traffic Safety
607 14th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20005
202-638-5944
February
14, 2006
Fact Sheet for the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety’s
Report:
Effects of Interventions
to Increase Use of Booster Seats in Motor Vehicles for 4-8 Year Olds
The Problem:
- Over 400
4-to-8-year-olds are killed in traffic crashes every year, and roughly
70,000 more are injured.
- Research has
shown that booster seats are extremely effective in reducing injuries in
crashes.
-
Example:
Research by the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) found that
booster seats reduce the risk of serious injury in crashes by 59 percent
for children aged 4 to 7, relative to using only a seatbelt.
- NHTSA-sponsored research shows that booster seat
use rates are very low.
-
Example: A
2002 study of booster seat use in 6 states found:
- 37 percent
of children aged 4-8 were using booster seats,
- 46 percent
were inappropriately using adult seatbelts, and
-
17 percent
were riding completely unrestrained.
Purpose of Current
Study:
- Analyze all
existing studies of the effectiveness of interventions aimed at increasing
booster seat use to determine what methods are most
effective.
Findings:
- Interventions
aimed at increasing booster seat use have increased usage rates by roughly
40 percent on average.
- Distribution of
free booster seats, coupled with educational outreach, was found to more
than double booster seat use rates.
Report produced by
Dr. John Ehiri, Dr. William King of the University
of Alabama at Birmingham, Dr. Henry Ejere of
Metropolitan Hospital, New York City, and Peggy Mouzon of Mouzon Information
Services.
