New Data: Children Buckled Up at Record Levels, But Parents Still Placing Children in the Front Seat in Alarming Numbers

American Academy of Pediatrics Strongly Reaffirms Backseats Are Safest; Air Bag & Seat Belt Safety Campaign to Redouble its Efforts

WASHINGTON, Feb. 7 -- As the nation kicks off Child Passenger Safety Week, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Air Bag & Seat Belt Safety Campaign will release new data showing that child restraint use has reached record levels and child fatalities from air bag deployment have declined significantly, but parents are still putting their children in the front seat at alarming rates, placing them at increased risk of serious injury or death.

The Air Bag & Seat Belt Safety Campaign and the American Academy of Pediatrics strongly recommend that children 12 and under ride properly restrained in rear seats. That includes infants in rear-facing seats, children in convertible seats, children in booster seats, or children restrained by seat belts. Research from the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety has found that rear seats are 35 percent safer.

  What:   * A press conference to release new data on child restraint use,
            front and back seat placement, and the rate of child deaths from
            air bag deployment.

          * Alert parents to the benefits of placing children in the rear
            seat.

          * The Air Bag & Seat Belt Safety Campaign and the American Academy
            of Pediatrics reaffirm back seat is best.

  Who:    * Jeffrey Runge, M.D., Administrator, National Highway Traffic
            Safety Administration (NHTSA)

          * Chuck Hurley, Executive Director, Air Bag & Seat Belt Safety
            Campaign and Vice President, National Safety Council

          * Dr. Marilyn Bull, Chairperson, Committee on Injury, Violence and
            Poison Prevention, American Academy of Pediatrics

  Where:  National Press Club, Lisagor Room
          529 14th Street, NW (Corner of 14th and F Streets)
          Washington, D.C.

  When:   10:00 a.m., Monday, February 10th, 2003

Source: Air Bag & Seat Belt Safety Campaign

CONTACT: John Chambers, +1-202-338-8700, or cell, +1-202-285-0448, for
Air Bag & Seat Belt Safety Campaign