Car seat safety knows no language

Haga clic aquí para ver este comunicado de prensa en español.

Statewide — Imagine you recently arrived in Colorado from another country and you don’t speak English. You brought your family with you, including an infant or young child. The country you came from had no laws regarding car seat or booster seat use. And it was common for many parents to not use car seats at all and to carry their small child on their lap while in their vehicle.

This is the reality for thousands of parents immigrating to Colorado each year. To address the widespread need for multilingual and multicultural child passenger safety education leading up to National Child Passenger Safety Week, Car Seats Colorado hosted a community engagement event at Paco Sanchez Park on Friday morning. As part of a holistic outreach effort, Car Seats Colorado is teaming up with multiple immigrant and refugee support organizations to address the issue. Friday’s event also offered free car seat education clinics in Spanish and English, and distributed a limited number of free car seats to clinic attendees.

Media kit including photos, video interviews and background information available at https://www.dropbox.com/sh/hp4cd9ihz395ppe/AADOsCF2jlFaKQOpKqES8jYwa?dl=0

“Educating New Americans on child passenger safety laws is critical, so that our newest community members are informed about how to keep their children safe,” said Dee Daniels Scriven, ONA’s Director.

According to data from Colorado’s newly formed Office of New Americans (ONA), New Americans make up 10% of Colorado’s population. Some New Americans come from countries that do not have car seat laws for children. Currently, there is no international standard for car seat and booster seat use. In the U.S., car crashes remain a leading cause of death for children under 12.

“CDOT and Colorado State Patrol are making it a priority to provide accessible resources to these newly arrived communities and offer online and in-person education opportunities that will help keep kids safe on our roads,” said Colorado State Patrol (CSP) Trooper Tim Sutherland.

CDOT and CSP are also providing car seat outreach at the Immigrant and Refugee Center of Northern Colorado and the African Community Center in Denver. Both organizations are offering in-person car seat and booster seat safety basics classes in multiple languages in the coming months, which will be open to the public.

Car Seats Colorado is also releasing a host of resources in 18 languages at https://www.codot.gov/safety/carseats/for-technicians/how-to-install-a-car-seat-right-in-18-languages — all available to the public, community and nonprofit organizations, as well as certified child passenger safety technicians. Resources include a new multilingual guide to proper car seat installation and use, a short series of videos in English and Spanish, and other printable and digital education materials to help keep all children safe on Colorado’s roads.

Across the state, the top languages spoken other than English are Spanish (49%), Vietnamese (2.7%), Chinese (2.5%), Russian (2.1%) and Korean (2%).

Common mistakes by parents unfamiliar with car seat safety laws and recommendations include:

• Not using car seats at all
• Not securing car seats to the vehicle or installing them incorrectly
• Using expired or recalled seats — or using seats that have previously been in a crash
• Using seats that don’t fit the weight, height or stage of development of their child
• Not using a booster seat until their child is big enough to properly use a seat belt alone
• Being unfamiliar with Colorado laws regarding proper child restraint

For more information on proper car seat use, to request free educational materials or to find a car seat check location in Colorado, visit CarSeatsColorado.com.

In addition to Friday’s event, Car Seats Colorado and the Immigrant and Refugee Center of Northern Colorado (IRCNoCo) are hosting Car Seat Safety Clinics in multiple languages at the end of the month.

Learn about correct seat fit, common mistakes, and available educational resources from a certified child passenger safety technician. Clinics are free and open to the public, date and location information is below:

• Date: September 29, 2022 from 10 a.m. to noon
• Location: Immigrant and Refugee Center of Northern Colorado
  3001 8th Ave., Ste 170 Evans, CO 80620

About Car Seats Colorado

Car Seats Colorado is a joint effort of the Colorado State Patrol, CDOT, local car seat technicians, law enforcement, emergency services and other professionals who are dedicated to implementing child passenger safety programs and encouraging parents to take the necessary steps to protect their children when in vehicles. Learn more about how to keep children safe in vehicles and download informational resources at CarSeatsColorado.com.