DaimlerChrysler Launches "Fit For A Kid"
13 December 1999
DaimlerChrysler Launches "Fit For A Kid" in Portland Area: Free Child Safety Seat Inspections for Customers by Appointment DaimlerChrysler is World's First Automaker to Offer Child Safety Seat
Inspections as a Customer Service Working With Fisher-Price and the National
Safety Council
PORTLAND, Ore., Dec. 10 -- On any given day in the Portland
area, an estimated eight out of ten children are at risk in safety seats that
are not properly secured. Help has arrived with a new DaimlerChrysler service
called Fit for a Kid.
Now, DaimlerChrysler customers in the Portland area will be able to have
their child safety seats checked -- for free, by appointment. It is the first
service of its type in the world. The service is a partnership with Fisher-
Price and with the support of the National Safety Council.
"Traffic crashes are the leading killer of kids," said Susan Cischke,
senior vice president, regulatory affairs and passenger car operations,
DaimlerChrysler. "Each year, about 1,000 children eight years of age and
under are killed on our nation's roads. Well-intentioned parents simply do
not realize that they may be installing their child's safety seat incorrectly.
With Fit for a Kid, we want to help prevent countless injuries and deaths
among children."
DaimlerChrysler's new Fit for a Kid safety seat inspection service will
serve more than 11,200 children a year in the Portland area. By the end of
2000, the national service will create the capacity to inspect more than
800,000 seats a year, compared to about 30,000 inspected in 1998 at community
events throughout the country.
Fourteen DaimlerChrysler dealers offer the service in the area. To find a
nearby dealer, customers can call 1-877-FIT-4-A-KID or click on
http://www.fitforakid.org. Then they can call the dealer directly to make an
appointment.
"With Fit for a Kid, DaimlerChrysler has set a new standard for child
passenger safety for the entire auto industry worldwide," said Jim Hall,
chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). "Incorrect
installation of child safety seats is a serious problem, and if every
automaker follows the leadership shown by DaimlerChrysler, the problem will be
addressed."
In January 1999, the NTSB issued a nationwide challenge to develop a
network of permanent child safety seat fitting stations. DaimlerChrysler's Fit
for a Kid is a direct response to the NTSB's call to action, and
DaimlerChrysler is the only automaker in the world to respond with a
comprehensive solution.
Joining that solution is Fisher-Price, which will lend its child safety
expertise and products to help make the program possible. Fisher-Price is
contributing Safe Embrace car seats as loaner seats for customers who need
them. The company also is offering discounts on Safe Embrace Convertible Car
Seats and Booster Car Seats to customers who discover during the inspection
that their current seat is not safe. Safe Embrace car seats were selected for
the program because of their design innovations and safety features, such as a
built-in tether strap.
"Every Fisher-Price product represents an on-going commitment to safety
and helping families get the best possible start in life. A significant part
of that commitment is our line of Safe Embrace car seats," said Ken Mitchell,
senior vice president lifestyle products, Fisher-Price. "Now, Fit for a Kid
has taken child passenger safety to a new level and established a model for
both the motor vehicle and child safety seat industries. We are very proud to
be a partner in this nationwide initiative."
The National Safety Council is coordinating the Fit for a Kid inspector
training. "Traffic fatalities and injuries among children are an epidemic. In
addition to 1,000 fatalities a year, traffic crashes injure an estimated
50,000 children under eight. Fit for a Kid is part of the vaccine," said
National Safety Council Executive Director for Public Affairs Chuck Hurley.
More than 2,000 new child safety seat inspectors will join the 24 in the
Portland area by the end of 2000-doubling the number of inspectors in the
United States. Each inspector undergoes an intensive 32-hour course using the
current Standardized Child Passenger Safety Training Program, developed by the
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Once inspectors complete the
course, they are certified through AAA.
"Our dealers are excited about Fit for a Kid," said Carl Fleck, zone
manager for DaimlerChrysler dealers in Portland and the surrounding area.
"Every day our customers ask questions about safety seats and where to go for
help. Now, we will be able to give our customers the expert help they need."
Fleck said the service will be available initially at Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep
and Plymouth dealers. Mercedes dealers are expected to offer the service next
year.
DaimlerChrysler also will make available to customers and install-free of
charge-top tether hardware. Tethers are designed to improve forward-facing
child seat performance in crashes by limiting the forward motion of the car
seat.
Fit for a Kid is one of several DaimlerChrysler safety initiatives. Other
safety programs include The Back is Where It's At, Do the Buckle, The Neon
Drunk Driver Simulator, and Stop Red Light Running. DaimlerChrysler also is a
partner in the Air Bag & Seat Belt Safety Campaign.
Fit for a Kid
Participating Dealers in the Portland Area
Alexander Chrysler Plymouth
2340 NE Sandy Blvd.
Portland, OR 97232
Beaverton Chrysler Plymouth
10760 SW Canyon Road
Beaverton, OR 97005
C.H. Urness Motors
505 Cherry Hts. Road
The Dalles, OR 97058
Dick Hannah Chrysler Plymouth
8900 E. Mill Plain Blvd.
Vancouver, WA 98664
Dicks Country Dodge
767 SW Baseline Road
Hillsboro, OR 97123
Gresham Dodge
855 NE Burnside
Gresham, OR 97030
Hershberger Motors, Inc.
777 Arney Road
Woodburn, OR 97071
Hood River CPDJ
1105 12th Street
Hood River, OR 97031
Lithia Dodge of Eugene
2121 Centennial Blvd.
Eugene, OR 97401
Mark Thomas Motors
2315 Santiam Hwy. SE
Albany, OR 97321
Ron Tonkin Dodge
19300 McLoughlin Blvd.
Gladstone, OR 97207
Timberline Dodge
2510 NE Sandy Blvd.
Portland, OR 97232
Vancouver Dodge
1015 NE 78th Street
Vancouver, WA 98665
Willamette Jeep
2755 Mission Street, SE
Salem, OR 97309
