Automobile accidents are the number one killer of children under the age of 16 in the United States. This is despite the mandatory use of child safety seats in virtually every state.

You can try to make your child as safe as possible in your car by following all of the government safety suggestions and buying the best (and often the most expensive) car seat, but that does not guarantee that the car seat will make your child safe. In a market with seemingly hundreds of different car seats in every conceivable price range, confusion is the norm in choosing one seat over another.

The real problem is that not all of the car seats available on the market are free from defects, either in the manufacturing of the seat or in their instructions for use. In fact, since 1990, more than 20 types of child car seats, involving millions of units, have been recalled by their manufacturers.

Because of such defects (and others not recalled), hundreds of children each year are injured in car seats that do not meet the minimum NTSB safety requirements.

Manufacturing and design defects leading to these recalls include the buckles and harnesses, the design of the plastic shell, and even the type of padding. Straps can be made to fit too loosely, allowing the child to be bounced around inside the seat, or even ejected from the seat entirely. Damages from these defects often include severe head injuries to the child.

A second problem also arises because of improper use of child seats. Not all car seats work in all cars, and not all of car seats have directions that are easy to follow.

The cost of a car seat, according to testing, is not indicative of the level of safety of the seat.

Other car seats which should never be used include an outdated seat, one that is worn out, or one that has been in an accident before.

If your child has been injured in an accident, and was in a car seat at the time, you will need a sophisticated law firm experienced in car seat litigation to determine if a defective car seat contributed to the injury. Please contact Gilbert, Ollanik & Komyatte, P.C.