Injuries from Power Windows Greatly Underestimated According to New Study

WHAT: Safety organization KidsAndCars.org will host a press conference unveiling data collected earlier this month in a poll administered by Harris Interactive that refutes National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) approximated power window-related injuries with statistics that differ not by thousands, but by millions of U.S. incidents. These data further supports KidsAndCars.org's claim that automatic reversing (ARS) windows should be standard on all vehicles.

While current legislation mandates "pull-up to close" switches on all vehicles introduced after October 1, 2010, it does not address third-party accidents, which occurs when a driver operating the switch cannot see rear seat passengers. Also as distracted driving becomes an escalating problem, drivers who are distracted may suffer from longer response times, causing further injury to a passenger that may be trapped in a window or unable to speak.

The results from the KidsAndCars.org new study provides strong evidence that the ARS must be made standard on all power windows, protecting children from death and injury.

WHO: The event will include an array of diverse groups who support this initiative including:

  --  KidsAndCars.org founder & president, Janette Fennell
  --  Public Citizen board member and former NHTSA Administrator, Joan
      Claybrook
  --  Testimonials from families whose children were critically injured or
      killed by power windows
  --  Consumers Union safety group

  --  Doctor testimonial on window-related injuries

  WHEN: Monday, November 2, 2009
  11:00 a.m. Press Conference
  11:45 a.m. Luncheon

  WHERE: National Press Club
  529 14th Street, NW
  Washington, DC 20045

  For more information see www.KidsAndCars.org.

  RSVP to Jessica Howell at jhowell@eisbrenner.com.