Children Left Unattended in Vehicles

From the Department of Social Services

Making safety a part of your daily routine can be the difference between life and death for a child in your care. Fifteen children in the United States have already died in 2012 due to heat strokes after being left unattended in vehicles. Leaving a child inside a vehicle with the windows rolled up - even a few minutes – can have deadly consequences.

A recent study conducted by the American Academy of Pediatrics showed that in just one hour, vehicle temperatures can reach up to 117 degrees Fahrenheit even though it is only 72 degrees outside. That same study reported that cars with cracked windows can still result in temperatures rising 19 degrees in just 10 minutes.

A reminder to child care providers:

Never leave a child unattended in a vehicle. California Code of Regulations, Title 22, Section 102417(k) (2) for Family Child Care Homes, prohibits children from being left in parked cars.

Make it part of your everyday routine to account for all children in your care.

• Always make a habit of looking in the vehicle, front and back, before locking the door and walking away.
• Do things to serve as a reminder that a child is in the vehicle, such as placing a purse or briefcase in the back seat to ensure no child is accidentally left in the vehicle. Writing a note or using a stuffed animal placed in the driver’s view to indicate a child is in the car seat.

Visit the (DMV) website to view the Prohibition Against Unattended Child in Vehicle Act (also known as "Kaitlyn's Law") incorporated into the California Vehicle Code (Division 6.7). This law makes it an infraction punishable by a fine of $100.00 for a parent, guardian or other person responsible for a child 6 years of age or younger, to leave the child in their care in a motor vehicle without supervision.

Crib Safety Standards

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has approved new standards for cribs which have not been updated in almost 30 years. The main focus was aimed more towards traditional cribs with drop-side rails which have been associated with at least 32 infant suffocation and strangulation deaths since 2000 however a press release from the CPSC stated that “additional deaths have occurred due to faulty or defective hardware”. The goal of these new safety standards is to prevent additional deaths and to make cribs safer for infants and children to sleep in.

For manufacturers this means that as of June, 2011 all cribs made or sold in the U.S. must meet these new federal safety standards which bans the sale and manufacture of traditional drop-down cribs, requires that crib mattress supports and crib hardware be stronger and more durable and makes safety testing more rigorous. Childcare centers (CC) and family child care homes (FCC) will have until December, 2012 to get cribs which meet these new standards. Most cribs manufactured before June, 2011 do not meet these new standards it is not recommended that these be purchase or used which, even if they look safe, may not meet the new safety regulations and could have loose or missing hardware, creating gaps which could trap a child.

Make no mistake; this ban is not only against drop-side cribs but rather unsafe cribs in general. If you have a crib that was manufactured prior to June 2011, chances are, your crib won’t meet the new standards. You can check to see if your crib meets the new safety standards by finding your crib’s model and serial number then contacting the manufacturer and asking them if the crib meets the 16 CFR 1219 standards. If it meets the new requirements you will need a certificate of compliance from the manufacturer which you can keep in your records.

What do you do with a crib that does not meet the new crib standards? The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission says that “A consumer should not resell, donate or give away a crib that does not meet the new crib standards, such as trying to resell the product through an online auction site or donating to a local thrift store” and recommends disassembling the crib before discarding it. It is also important to note that collapsible and portable cribs with mess sides (such as play yards and pack’n’plays) are not affected by the new crib standards.

More information about the new crib standards can be found here.