Pre-Teens 10-14

Here is an alarming statistic: Every day 44 kids are hit by a car while walking in the United States. That’s 16,000 kids hurt every year. Clearly, something needs to be done, and Safe Kids and FedEx are teaming up to help keep kids safe on the road as they head back to school.

Moving to D.C. and having to walk everywhere was a huge adjustment. My worries coming out centered around running out of data on my phone from using Google Maps, getting lost, or the blisters I might get on my feet from walking so much. What I should have been concerned with is my safety as a pedestrian.

Our new study helps answer some of the questions parents have about when to switch from a booster seat to just a seat belt. We surveyed 1,000 parents of children ages 4 to 10 and found that an alarming number of parents are allowing kids to use a seat belt alone before they are big enough. In fact, 7 in 10 parents do not know that a child should be at least 57 inches (4’9”) to ride in a car without a booster seat.