A car seat installation check is scheduled this week in St. Joseph in an effort to keep area children safe on roadways.

Certified Child Passenger Safety (CPS)Technicians will check car seats for free from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., Wednesday, Aug. 5, in the parking lot of Missouri Department of Transportation at 3902 N. Belt Highway in St. Joseph.

CPS technicians from multiple agencies will assist parents and caregivers on proper car seat installation and use.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, three out of four safety seats are primed for failure if the unthinkable happens and the child is in a wreck. Misuse can be defined as something simple such as tightening the restraining straps or as catastrophic as not being secured to the vehicle properly. Many times, children are not in the correct seat. When this is the case, most often children have been mistakenly “graduated” to the next step in the succession of seats designed to keep them safe until they grow into the vehicle’s seat and seat belt system.

Missouri law requires all children under eight to be in a child safety or booster seat until they are 80 pounds or 4’9″ tall. Child restraint systems come in a wide variety of makes and models, confusing many parents on proper installation and use.

Certified Child Passenger Safety Technicians will be able to reassure parents and caregivers they are using seats that are not expired or on a recall list, are appropriate for the age and size of the child, and are installed and used correctly. Parents and others who transport children should bring the vehicle and the seat(s), along with their manufacturer manuals, and the child(ren) using the seat(s).