Several unfortunate factors contribute to childhood deaths, including disease and accidents in the home. However, one leading cause of death among children is traffic accidents. Maryland parents may wish to take precautionary steps to keep their children safe while driving. Parents could avoid traveling at times when traffic and accident risks are high while avoiding making any moving violations. Unfortunately, parents and other adults cannot control how others drive.
Childhood deaths and car accidents
Per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), traffic accidents result in a significant number of childhood deaths yearly. Parents may wish to take notice of the safety benefits of car seats for infants and booster seats for toddlers. These seats could increase the chances of a small child surviving a vehicle collision. Also worth noting is the value of seat belts.
Seat belts might increase the chances of an older child’s survival by 50%. However, with very young children, booster and car seats seem necessary as seat belts might be woefully inadequate.
Parents and other adults could be more defensive with driving to reduce accident risks. Avoiding congested traffic, high-risk accident areas and not driving at night or in inclement weather when traveling with a child may reduce potential catastrophes.
Negligence and child injuries and fatalities
Negligence often factors into car accidents, and some of these collisions may take a child’s life. A reckless driver might crash into a vehicle after committing one or more moving violations. Drunk drivers who go through red lights and hit other cars may face a civil suit and serious criminal charges.
Booster and child safety seats have limitations that become more pronounced when a product suffers from defects. Parents could have a credible lawsuit against a manufacturer that released a dangerous product to the market.