This month is child safety awareness month in Florida and the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles is reminding motorists to focus on child safety on and around Florida roads and ensure all children are correctly buckled into a vehicle, every time.
Motor vehicle crashes remain a leading cause of death among children nationwide.
Last year, Florida saw a 30% decrease in children involved in crashes yet a 32% increase in child fatalities from crashes when compared to 2019.
In 2020, nearly 50% of child passengers killed in vehicle crashes in Florida were not wearing any type of restraint – a 127% increase from 2019.
Florida law requires all drivers and occupants in the front seat of a vehicle to fasten their safety belts.
Occupants under the age of 18, regardless of where they sit in a vehicle, also must buckle up.
The Florida Highway Patrol offers free car seat installation and safety checks at major FHP troop stations throughout the state.
And remember, school buses will be on the roads again this month so drive carefully.
As of January 1, 2021, the penalties for failing to stop for a school bus or passing a stopped school bus on the side where children enter and exit doubled.
Using your phone while driving in a designated school crossing, school zone, or active work zone area is also against the law and extremely dangerous.
And remember to never leave a child unattended or unsupervised in a motor vehicle.
It is extremely hot, especially in Florida, and leaving a child in a car can result in the child’s injury or death.
The inside of a vehicle can heat up by 20 degrees in just 10 minutes and a child’s body temperature can rise three to five times faster than an adult’s and heatstroke in a closed vehicle can occur when the temperature is as low as 57 degrees outside.
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