Dangers of Leaving Children in Hot Vehicles

 Posted on December 00, 0000 in Cook County personal injury lawyer

Summer has officially arrived and that means longer days and hotter temperatures. With those temperatures, comes the warning to parents and caregivers about the dangers of leaving children unattended – or allowing them access to – hot vehicles. Doing so can have tragic consequences.

The temperature in a closed car sitting in the sun can hit 40 to 50 degrees more than the temperature outside. For example, if it is 80 degrees outside, the temperature in a locked up car can reach 120 to 130 degrees very quickly. If you leave a child locked in a car, even for just a few minutes, it could be fatal.

Last year, 44 children died from heatstroke after being left in a locked car. This year, there have already been 13 deaths of children left in vehicles. Statistics provided by San Francisco University show that since 1998, 619 children’s lives have been lost to heatstroke suffered from being left unattended in a locked vehicle.

The breakdown of the cause of those deaths has been reported as:

• - In 52 percent of the cases, a caregiver “forgot” about the child;
• - In 29 percent of the cases, the child was playing in the car;
• - In 18 percent of the cases, the child was knowingly and intentionally left in the car by the parent or caregiver;
• - In 1 percent of the cases, the cause was unknown.

The majority of the victims, 436 of them, were under the age of two. Another 119 victims were between the ages of three and four.

There are ways to prevent this tragedy from happening. Never leave children unattended in a vehicle for any reason. If you make it a habit of not doing it, you will not be tempted to do it even in those times you think will only be “for a minute.”

Get into the habit of checking to make sure that no one is in the car when you exit. Sometimes, a person can get distracted while unloading items, so it is important to make sure to always do a final visual sweep of your vehicle when you are done.

Always keep you vehicle doors locked and make sure children do not have access to remote locks or keys. Two good ideas are to keep a stuffed toy in the front seat to remind you of the child in the back seat and to keep something you will need to take with you when you exit the vehicle – a phone, purse, etc. – in the back seat.

It’s also important to have a plan with your caregiver so that if for some reason your child doesn’t show up, they contact you immediately. If you ever see a child alone in a vehicle, you should immediately call 911.

If your child has been injured due to the negligence of a caregiver or someone else, contact an Orland Park personal injury attorney today to find out what compensation you may be entitled to for pain and loss.