How would you handle this?

ConnorsMommy

New member
I think I've posted on here before about my frustration in regards to the car seat misuse at my son's school. I was able to have a tech come to the school and was able to help about 30 kids ride safer in the car. :) I know I can't change everyone, but there are 2 situations that are still really bothering me:

First, there is one girl in my son's class who gets picked up by her grandpa. Before, he'd come pick her up in his truck with a old Britax seat that was at least 10 years old (blue shell, red lock-offs, plaid cover). Now, he sometimes comes to pick her up in a small, old rusty car. It seems to me that they don't have much money, so I'm not criticizing his vehicle. My issue is that he puts his granddaughter, who is about 4 years old, in the back seat without any sort of car seat. He does buckle her in (I saw him today) but it is a lap belt only and the seats don't have any headrests. The backseats are really low, so her head is above the top of the seat. The combination of the fact that the car is old without modern safety features and that she isn't in a car seat really worries me. She'd have very little chance in an accident. I told the director at the school, but I am not sure if she has talked to him. What should I do? I don't know the grandpa so I have no idea how he'd react if I talked to him.

Second, when the car seat tech was at the school, there was one mom who parked next to the car the tech was working on. She was in a 2 door sports car with only 2 seat belts in back. I noticed that she had 2 kids in the back. One was about 2-3 years old and was not in any kind of car seat/booster. The baby, about 9 months old, was in an infant seat semi-installed FF! The tech talked to her about it, letting her know that it was very dangerous and illegal, even telling her that in our state, if she was pulled over and a cop saw that, she could be arrested for neglect. She shrugged him off and refused to let him show her how to properly use the seat. She went into the school and came out with another boy. She had 3 kids in 2 seat belts in the back seat, with the older 2 in no car seats. The day before spring break, I looked in her car and she still had the infant seat FF. I called the tech and he said he'd call the police and have them send her a letter. Should I just leave it at that?

Part of me is wondering if I should call the police and ask them to come to the school at pick up time and catch parents like that. Another part of me wonders if I should just keep my nose out of it. What would you do?
 
ADS

wvmommy007

New member
Could the tech have the police come issue tickets? People are more motivated by the threat of fines than safety, or so it seems. But, I know if I called our local police over car seat misuse, they wouldn't know what was correct anyway. They might know enough to issue a ticket for lack of a car seat though, and certainly for 3 kids in 2 seat belts.
 

SheSparkles

New member
we are having the same issue at my daughter's preschool. i emailed the director about it monday and yesterday as we were signing the kids in our teacher reminded everyone to please have their children secured in carseats or boosters in our cars and that would be having some suprise visitors in the parking lot sometime this week to enforce that. i can't wait to see what happens!!
 

wavegal

New member
I agree have the tech call the police, maybe they know someone who would take it seriously compared to someone else who would just brush it off.
 

thepote

New member
In addition to the PP suggestions about the police, what about a letter to the head of the PTA? They may want to get involved as well.
 

Mom2FiveGirls

Active member
I really don't think there is much more you can do. You did great! A lot of people were willing to listen to the tech and 30 kids being safer is an awesome thing! The tech is going to contact the police, so they will be aware. This person KNOWS what they are doing is wrong and refused the help of the tech. There really isn't much more you can do. You can talk until you are blue in the face, but some people are just going to refuse to change. It sucks, but that's just the way it is. I know at my girls' school there is a police officer there most days and absolutely nothing has been done about the number of Kindergarten and first grade kids (heck, even pre-k) who aren't in a booster or anything. I try to make myself not look in other cars...
 

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