Children are less likely to be victims of fatal car accidents than are older passengers in part because children generally have more safety gear. However, there are other ways that children can be injured around vehicles. Keep reading to learn a few tips you can follow to keep your child – and other children – safer on the streets. If you or a loved one is injured in a car accident, contact The Law Offices of Larry H. Parker at 800-333-0000 for a free legal consultation.
Do Not Leave a Child Alone in a Car
If you leave your child alone in a car, they could be injured or killed by heatstroke much faster than you might think. Even leaving them “for a few minutes” can be dangerous. Consider that if the outside temperature is in the low 80s, it can take just minutes for the interior of the vehicle to reach a deadly temperature. That is true even if the windows are rolled down.
Part of the reason children are in such danger in a vehicle is that, depending on their age, their body temperatures can rise three to five times faster than the temperatures of adults. If you leave the car running with the air conditioning on, you might think they are safe. Really, you are just teaching the child that it is okay and fun to be left in a car. This sets a dangerous precedent.
Take Special Care When Backing Out and Parking
Before you back out of any driveway or parking spot, it is important to look around your vehicle to check for kids that might be running and playing. Even if you have a backup camera, that only shows you what is behind it at that moment. Taking a second to look over your shoulder could alert you to the fact that there are kids running nearby that could run behind your vehicle at any second.
The same is true of parking. Children are shorter than adults, so do not assume that you will see a child overtop your mailbox, buses, etc. When pulling into a parking space in which you cannot see every inch of the space, pull in slowly so that you can identify any children or other hazards before you pull in.
Call Us if You or Your Child is Injured in an Accident This Summer
If your child, or you, are injured in an accident this summer in which someone else was at fault, then we welcome you to contact The Law Offices of Larry H. Parker at 800-333-0000 for a free legal consultation. We can quickly go over the issue to determine the best way forward.
