Dubai : Car seats for infants and toddlers should be made mandatory by federal legislation to protect them in crashes, suggest health and transportation experts.
Already mandatory in North America, UK and Europe, car seats are said to prevent 53,000 injuries and 500 deaths of children four years and younger per year if properly used, studies show.
Currently, UAE traffic laws dictate that children are to be securely fastened by seat belts in the rear seats only and children under 10 years of age are not allowed to ride in the front seat.
Speaking at the Gulf Traffic Conference in Dubai, Dr Jens Thomsen, Head of Public Health and Research at the Health Authority Abu Dhabi (HAAD), said his agency is pushing for mandatory car-seat laws in the UAE.
"Based on our data, we strongly encourage the UAE to introduce the seats by law," Thomsen said. He cited a random traffic survey conducted by UAE University in Al Ain which found that most children travelling with their parents were roaming free inside vehicles and were not wearing any safety devices.
The Traffic Injury Prevention survey discovered that of a total 876 children observed in vehicles, "ninety-eight per cent were not restrained", said Thomsen. And the survey found that 204, or 23 per cent, of the children were riding in the front seat.
"This is quite common to see," said Thomsen. "We often see the child in the lap of the mother in the front seat and unrestrained."
By contrast, securing a child in a children's car seat and placing it in the rear of the car could prevent fatalities for infants in 71 per cent of accident cases and 54 per cent for toddlers, he said.
