8 in 10 Dutch kids not securely strapped into car seats

Nine out of ten Dutch parents think that they transport their children safely by car, but that is by far not the case, according to a study by Taskforce Child Safety. Eight out of ten children are unsafe in the car because their car seat is not used properly, the researchers found, RTL Nieuws reports.

Half of car seats are not installed properly, and children are often not properly strapped it. Six out of ten children are not secured tightly enough because parents do not strap them in properly.

"A shocking result is that nine out of ten parents think they are transporting their child safely", Saskia Kloet of VeligheidNL said to the broadcaster. "The purchase of the right car seat is not enough. The next steps are the correct installation of the car seat in the car and the proper securing of your child in the car seat."

When this same study was done in 2013 the researchers found that three-quarters of children between the ages of 0 and 4 years were not properly secured in their car seats. The situation has therefore not improved. VeiligheidNL will therefore improve information about the proper use of car seats.