Buckle up children to avoid fine

Mother-of-three Leanne Meltzinitis takes advice from Riverlink PramWarehouse sales assistant Chris Siebenhausen on children’s car seats.Photo: Rob Williams MA1010WL

DRIVERS ignoring new child restraint laws will risk being fined $300 from today.

Queensland Police said there would be no “grace” period and the new laws would be enforced from day one.

Drivers can also lose three demerit points if children aged up to seven years are not lawfully restrained.

The new laws require all children up to seven to be appropriately seated in an Australian Safety Standard-approved child restraint or capsule, according to their age and size.

Kidsafe Queensland, a non-profit charity listed on Queensland Transport’s website as an information point, has been receiving about 50 calls a day relating to the changes.

Executive officer Susan Teerds said many more callers were unable to get through.

“We knew because it was a radical change that the queries would build,” she said.

“A lot of people are very misinformed and getting it seriously wrong.

“I find that people are getting confused with the Queensland Transport brochures – they are misleading people.

“The weights are what the seats are rated for.

“Parents need to be very careful using advertising brochures for their information or sales assistants in big chain stores.”

Ms Teerds advised motorists to source their information from Kidsafe on 3854 1829 or Queensland Transport on 13 23 80.

She said some parents were putting children into a booster seat at too young an age.

Parents need to know their child’s weight and height before choosing a car restraint.

“From age four to seven years, that weight range on the information brochure is what the seat is rated for,” Ms Teerds said.

“If your four-year-old doesn’t yet weigh 14kg, then they have to stay in the toddler seat with an in-built harness.”

Ms Teerds said the new rules would decrease the number of children being killed and injured.

“That is how the new rules came about – after looking at car-crash injuries,” she said.

“For 30 years Kidsafe has been dedicated to the prevention of injury and death in children.”

From April 2003 to March 2008, 1827 children aged seven years or under were casualties in Queensland road crashes.

The RACQ has welcomed the new legislation.