Travelling in a car is a common activity for most families and keeping your child safe is easier with these auto safety tips for kids. The kids auto/car safety (tips) in this parent’s guide/resource provides parents with the necessary information to keep their children as safe as possible.

The first of the kids auto/car safety (tips) is to always place the child in the back seat when possible. The back seat is the safest place in the car. Most newer model vehicles are equipped with airbags designed to help protect adults when in automobile accidents, but they are powerful and can easily injure or kill a child. The parent’s guide/resource list suggests placing children in the middle of the backseat for added protection in the event of a side-impact collision.

Child safety advocates consulted for this parent’s guide/resource list suggest keeping all children under the age of one in a rear-facing car seat until they reach at least 22 pounds. Even infants who weigh more than 22 pounds but are under the age of one should remain in a rear-facing car seat to provide the added neck and head protection offered by the car seat.

The next of our kids auto/car safety (tips) is to keep your child in a car seat with a full harness as long as you possibly can, which must be at least until the child reaches 40 pounds and is at least four years old. Most state laws dictate these same restrictions and some states also impose height restrictions as well. Checking the laws of your state the best way to ensure you are not only following the parameters of the law, but that you also are providing the best protection for your child.

Even after your child has reached the age, weight and in some cases height levels, which allow for the removal of the car seat, make sure your child always wear proper safety restraints while in the vehicle. This is perhaps the most important kids auto/car safety (tips) that can be provided.

The next kids auto/car safety (tips) provided in the parent’s guide/resource pool is never leave your child alone in the vehicle. While it may seem harmless – and a lot more convenient – to simply lock the doors and run into the gas station or convenience store to grab the one item you need, surprisingly, children are left unattended in cars quite often. In addition to the obvious risk of kidnapping, children also may suffer from heat stroke, attempt to start the vehicle and set it in motion, hurt themselves on objects in the vehicle or get trapped in a position that prohibits free air flow.

The parent’s guide/resource list of kids auto/car safety (tips) recommends keeping the doors and trunk locked on the vehicle at all times when at home, even when parked in the driveway or the garage. Even though the car may not be running, children playing in parked cars is never a good idea – they can get trapped in an unlocked trunk or lock themselves in the car with little trouble.

Even though car keys are a commonly interesting item to children, kids should never be allowed to play with or mishandle car keys. Kids auto/car safety (tips) rely on parents teaching children not to play near or in cars and the parent’s guide/resource also suggest installing cross-view mirrors and back-up devices on the vehicle.

Keeping your child safe is every parent’s concern, understandably. Use these kids auto/car safety (tips) as a parent’s guide/resource and discuss these safety measures with your children when age appropriate.