Seat belt strangulation

christineka

New member
How much of a problem is this anyway? Is there a certain age group where this is more likely to be an issue? I am not in any way worried about my kids strangling themselves with the seatbelt. They don't play with it. The only report I've ever heard was from a few years ago, involving a teenager.
 
ADS

AshleyCPST

CPS Technician
there was a parent and grandparent that posted on the National CPS Cert FB page and the NHTSA? page i think that the daughter had gotten the belt around the little brother's neck (unsure of ages) and locked it. they had to cut the belt, other than that i havent seen or heard of it happening.
 

monica-m

CPST Instructor
I remember hearing a story involving this and one of our members here. I have PM'd her.

Seat belt strangulation is something that we talk about in our seat checks at the check station I volunteer with. I think it's a real hazard that parents and caregivers need to be aware of to help prevent injury or death due to a freak accident.
 

wendytthomas

Admin - CPST Instructor
Staff member
The only ages I've heard of it are older kids. I had not heard of the sister doing it to her younger brother. But it is something I often discuss, and is listed on the paperwork when I work public checks.

Wendy
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
Bridget wrapped the belt around her neck when she was 4 and in the Go (but did not pull it out to lock it.) I buckled it behind and locked it after that. She's the only one so far who's shown any inclination to play with a belt, but then she's also the only one who was in a seat where she really had access. In the rare cases where I end up doing an install where there's a loose belt present with switchable retractor and the kid would have access to it, I mention it to the parent and we usually end up buckling it to be on the safe side. But since most of my installs are middle seat installs and most of them don't have LATCH in the vehicles I work with it usually ends up that we are using the only accessable seatbelt anyway. (Most of the installs with older kids the kid is close to or over the LATCH limit so we end up with seatbelt there, too. Just a quirk of the vehicles around here I guess.)
 

canadiangie

New member
No idea, but I tuck seatbelts out of reach all the time at seat checks. I show parents what can happen, tell them there's no formal direction on this, but that I recommend keeping belts out of reach. I don't buckle the belt and lock it, tho. I just tuck it out of reach. Most of the time between the seatback cushion and side bolster. I just wedge it in there. if the seat is in the middle I tuck the belt between the 60/40, or detach the belt... basically it's a case by case thing.
 

PikkuMyy

New member
My former co-teacher told me it happened with a child she was babysitting once. She had to pull over because he was choking and the seat belt had to be cut off.

My son used to mess with the seat belt in the front passenger seat if he was sitting outboard. He would pull it out with his foot. My 1 year old nephew (RF) will also tug on the seat belt with his foot. I lock the seat belt now. I simply don't want to take the chance.
 

Pixelated

Moderator - CPST Instructor
There were some threads about this about this time last year...which I remember because I went out and bought an emergency belt cutter/window breaking tool just before Christmas, and reading something on here made me realize that if I ever did have to cut a belt I likely wouldn't have had anything in either vehicle to cut a belt should I ever need to. Then I used it to cut teaching belts out of cars at the auto wrecker's and accidentally stabbed myself in the finger with the window breaking tool while doing so.:rolleyes:

My 4 year old can reach the 2nd row outboard seat belt with her foot when she's 3rd row outboard in our van, which isn't often.

At a check it's something I would assess on a case by case basis. Usually buckling the belt and routing it up over the head rest makes it long enough to remain locked.
 

tanyaandallie

Senior Community Member
There was an incident in my area a number of years back. Teen wrapped the seat belt around his neck, it locked, and he died. VERY sad. Though I guess it's important that we talk about it, I don't think it's all that common. My kids have just never played with the seat belt either.
 

kathysr98

Active member
My dd managed to get ahold of the front passenger seatbelt in my mustang when she was RF. it was dark & I was traveling with a group of three cars in Arkansas. I quickly got off the side of the road & bailed out of the car & around to the passenger side to get it away from her. I was really freaked out & so were the people in the other cars. They thought something terrible must have happened because of the way I acted.
 

safeinthecar

Moderator - CPS Technician
I replied to Monica in pm because I didn't realize there was a thread going about it. I cant c&p what I wrote from my kindle but Monica is welcome to share or I'll do it tomorrow from a real computer. DS was 5 btw.
 

aschofield

New member
In the owner's manual for my car (2013 VW golf) in the car seat section, it says when installing child seats to loop unused seatbelts over the headrest next to them to keep them out of reach of children.

It also mentions rear facing until 3 years, and harnessing until 6. :)
 

monica-m

CPST Instructor
This is what Kimberly PM'd me.
safeinthecar said:
Yes. I was booster training DS and he grabbed the adjacent seatbelt and wrapped it around his neck 3 times. The retractor locked and it was cutting off his airway to the point that he couldn't make any sound at all. I glanced back to check on him as I went under a street light, otherwise he probably would have died silently in the dark by the time I got home (10 mins away).

I tell this story to people all the time to illustrate the need to secure unused belts and to really watch a kid while booster training. DS was plenty aware of the need to not touch the seat belt holding him in, but no one had ever told him to not play with other belts he could reach.
 

Brigala

CPST Instructor
At the first car seat clinic I worked at, playing with a loose seat belt was the primary complaint of a grandmother who came through with a Maestro in booster mode (grandson not present). The child was quite obese and over the weight limit for the Maestro's harness, but was only barely or maybe just under 3 years old, and in booster mode she couldn't stop him from leaning forward and playing with the front passenger seat belt and wrapping it around himself however he could.

Another family at the same clinic came in and at the end of the check as I was going down the form and came to the "unused seat belt" section (remember, I was a new tech and I probably would have forgotten it if it weren't on the form; so I hadn't put the seat belt out of reach during the install), the parents gave me a look like "You can't be serious, that doesn't really happen." I stood there and explained to them how the ratcheting thing works and could choke a child, and they gave me that "yeah right" look... until they looked in their car where their preschool age son was sitting in his car seat gleefully wrapping the seat belt around his neck. We were standing right there and hadn't had our eyes off him for more than 30 seconds at the moment, and he hadn't engaged the ALR yet so he was never in any real danger, but they sure changed their tune really quickly. We all had a pretty good laugh about it and re-did the car seat with the buckle tucked safely out of the way.

I always tell parents that accidents are very rare, but because they're so easily preventable, why take the chance? I also tell the story about the kid at that car seat clinic and that seems to take them from "no way" to "now that I think about it, kids this age are weird and who's to say they won't play with the seat belt?"
 

CrazyBoysMamma

New member
I always tell parents that accidents are very rare, but because they're so easily preventable, why take the chance? I also tell the story about the kid at that car seat clinic and that seems to take them from "no way" to "now that I think about it, kids this age are weird and who's to say they won't play with the seat belt?"

:yeahthat: Even if it only ever prevented one death, wouldn't it be worth it? I always talk to parents about unused seatbelts. Part of that may be that some of my training came from a CHP officer and the CHP is making unused seatbelts a HUGE deal, but I see it as one of those things that is easy to do, doesn't cost anything, but has a teeny tiny chance of making a massive impact.
 
C

crstearns

Guest
:yeahthat: Even if it only ever prevented one death, wouldn't it be worth it? I always talk to parents about unused seatbelts. Part of that may be that some of my training came from a CHP officer and the CHP is making unused seatbelts a HUGE deal, but I see it as one of those things that is easy to do, doesn't cost anything, but has a teeny tiny chance of making a massive impact.

This happens WAY more often than you would imagine. It can happen in all cars with retractable seatbelts which are all cars from 2000 on), and it has resulted in both injuries and death to people of all ages, from toddlers to adults. Your kids may never have played with their seatbelts, but it only takes one time. I have a dear friend whose son almost strangled when he wrapped the seat belt around his neck and it would not release. Thank god she had a pair of scissors in the car and was able to cut the seatbelt in time. She is currently working to raise awareness about this problem and to get the government to require car companies to remedy the problem. If you think seatbelt strangulation is rare, google it and you will be amazed at how many incidents of it you will find.
 

noahsmom24

Active member
What an informative thread, first I have ever heard of seatbelt strangulation! Ds has never played with seat belts (age 6) but doesn't mean he won't ever and good to know for the future! Now I will be looking for a seat belt cutter and window breaking tool! Since it was mentioned as well and its one of those things I have wanted but have always put off.
 

Mysweethoneybee

New member
I have never thought of this until I started occasionally taking a certain neighbor kid to school sometimes. She is in a booster and she likes to wrap the seat belt around her neck. She is old enough to know better I thought. Before that one time my oldest son wrapped a seat belt around his arm and his hand turned blue and we had a difficult time just getting it unwrapped from his arm.
 

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