Contact: Sue Rogan, 240-777-3722
For Immediate Release: July 18, 2001

UPCOMING CAR SEAT CHECK FOLLOWS
RECORD BREAKING CAR SEAT CHECK

A free car seat check will be held on Thursday, July 19th from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Fitzgerald Auto Mall, located at 5501 Nicholson Lane in Rockville (near White Flint Mall). Inspections will be conducted on a first-come, first-served basis. Parents and caregivers of children ages birth to ten years old are urged to attend this event to receive hands-on instructions on how to protect their children while riding in vehicles.

The potential for injury to children while riding in vehicles was demonstrated at a record breaking car seat check event held on June 21 at Fitzgerald's in Rockville, where 777 car seats were inspected and only 110 of those seats were installed correctly.

"Fitzgerald's staff and management are to be commended for providing this free service to the public and hosting the largest single car seat check event in the nation," said Montgomery County Executive Douglas M. Duncan. "The highly trained people who participate in these car seat checks are dedicated to preventing injury to children who are riding in vehicles. There are now 667 children better protected because of that one car seat check."

Trained safety specialists will check car seats for proper installation, age/size appropriateness and to determine if the seats have been recalled or visibly damaged. According to the National Safe Kids Campaign, car seats, when correctly installed and used, are extremely effective in saving children's lives in automobile crashes, reducing the risk of death by as much as 71 percent. National studies, however, have found that more than 80 percent of car seats are installed or used incorrectly.

The July 19 car seat check will be sponsored by Fitzgerald Automotive, Montgomery County and the Montgomery County SAFE KIDS Coalition. The record breaking seat check held in June included the same sponsors along with the Maryland State Police.

For more information, call the Montgomery County Car Seat Hotline at 240-777-3660. Parents and caregivers can also check the Montgomery County Division of Consumer Affairs' web page at hca.emontgomery.org or Fitzgerald Auto Mall's web page at www.FitzMall.com.