Parents are often to blame for car accident deaths to children

We all know that car accidents can be serious, but how often do serious car accidents affect children? The answer may be more alarming than you may have expected.

When we strap our kids into our car and head out on the roads, the last thing on our minds is the possibility of a car accident. Yet, as we discuss each week, accidents on the roads throughout the United States, including Baton Rouge, Louisiana, kills tens of thousands of Americans each year. Often children. So, what are the leading factors that cause injuries and deaths to children in car accidents?

According to a recent report published by the Journal of Pediatrics based on a four year study using information from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, more often than not, parents are partially to blame for the injuries and deaths of children involved in accidents. In fact, some of the findings are staggering.

As many as 95 percent of families do not properly install their infant car seats. Seventy five percent of parents do not even face their car seats in the right direction. And when an accident does occur, it is difficult to ignore more of the statistics. Between 2010 and 2014, there were over 18,000 children under the age of 15 who were killed in car accidents. Of them, 20 percent were not properly restrained or were unrestrained.

Regardless of how a child is restrained while in a car, if you or your loved one was involved in a car accident, the victim or victims may still be entitled to compensation for injuries or death. In order to determine whether a victim or a victim’s family is eligible, you may want to reach out to a law firm familiar with personal injury for advice and guidance.

Source: Huffington Post, “43 Percent Of Kids Killed in Car Crashes Aren’t Properly Restrained,” By Caroline Bologna, May 31, 2017