Government urged to introduce legislation for baby car seats

The Government has been urged to introduce legislation to make it compulsory for cars to install baby seats when ferrying infants and young children.

Malaysian Consumers Association (Maconas) secretary-general Datuk Amarjit Singh Gill said it was imperative that such measures be made compulsory to help save lives of young children.

Referring to a two-vehicle crash on May 2 at the Duke (Duta Ulu Kelang Expressway) Highway (in Kuala Lumpur), where a man, wife and their seven-month-old daughter were killed after being flung out of their vehicle, he said:

"Had the infant been strapped securely in the baby car seat, perhaps her life could have been saved," he said in a statement Monday.

Amarjit said thousands of vehicles were driven daily and children ranging from infant to five years of age were at risk as they were seated in the rear without proper restraint.

The Ipoh-based lawyer said according to a survey, statistics showed that baby car seats reduced the risk of death by 71 per cent for infants, and by 54 per cent for children aged one to five.