What You Should Know About Children and Air Bags

Air bags have been standard issue on vehicles since 1998. In fact, many of the vehicles on the road in Kansas and Missouri are most likely equipped with air bags. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) frontal airbags saved an astounding 14,000 lives between 1987 and 2003. When used properly, air bags contribute greatly to the safety of drivers and passengers in the event of an automobile collision; however, airbags can be dangerous when they are used improperly.

How they work

In order to understand the danger air bags can pose, it is necessary to know how air bags work. Essentially, an air bag is an inflatable cushion that fills with air in the event of an impact. A sensor picks up on the rapid deceleration of the vehicle, signaling electricity that heats up an element in a propellant. The reaction causes the air bag to inflate within 1/20^th of a second. Immediately the airbag begins to deflate, giving the passenger a softer landing. Air bags will be completely deflated within 0.3 seconds. Air bags are meant to protect the passenger or driver from an impact with a hard surface, such as a dashboard or steering wheel in a collision.

Dangers

Unfortunately, airbags can prove hazardous to short-statured individuals (namely, children and small adults) who can be struck in the face and/or chest and seriously hurt when an airbag inflates. It is imperative to provide at least 10 inches of space between the driver or passenger and the air bag. Anything less puts the person in serious jeopardy. This distance will allow the air bag to provide the safety it was designed for, and reduce the danger to people.

Car seats and air bags do not mix. Infants who sit in rear facing car seats should never ride in the front seat of a vehicle, especially when an air bag is in use. Children in rear facing safety seats are dangerously close to the air bag. The word about the use of air bags and car seats has begun to make a difference. An NHTSA report indicates the decline of air bag related deaths in children between the years 1996 and 2001. Twenty-six children were killed by air bags in 1996, compared to only nine in 2001.

Air bags are designed to work with seat belts. Lap and shoulder belts, the ideal companion for air bag safety, must fit properly in order to be effective. Lap belts should lie across the upper thighs; shoulder restraints fit across the chest. Unrestrained children who sit in front of an air bag are 84 percent more likely to die in a crash because of the air bag.

Children should ride in the back

The safest place for a child to ride in the car is in the back seat. Children under age twelve should never ride in the front seat when an air bag is in use. Even when a child is restrained by a seat belt, they are 31 percent more likely to be killed in a car crash than restrained children with no air bag present. The lesson is simple, when a child below the age of twelve is riding in a vehicle with an air bag, he or she must ride in the backseat.

Have you or a loved one been injured in a car accident? If you have questions about your rights, contact the personal injury attorneys at Kansas City Accident Injury Attorneys by calling 888-348-2616 toll free for a free consultation. You may also wish to take advantage of our free resource guide, 10 Essential Steps You Must Take To Protect Your Injury Claim which is available to download from our website.