HAMDEN -- Stronger child auto safety laws will take effect a week from on October 1.
Child safety advocates, medical professionals and police took part in a press conference Thursday morning at the AAA offices in Hamden.
The new law states that children are required to be restrained in a rear facing, five point safety seat, until they are at least two years old and weigh at least 30 pounds.
"Children's necks, their vertebrae, are not fully formed bone until closer to the age of three," said Nick Aysseh, the Community Outreach Educator for Yale New Haven Hospital. "So they're more cartilage and are more susceptible to injury especially one forward facing."
Once children reach at least five years old and weigh a minimum of 40 pounds, they can transition into a booster seat, where they must remain until they are at least eight years old and 60 pounds..
Statistics show that only one out of every five child safety seats is properly installed. So, it it recommended you log on to Safe Kids Connecticut and set up an appointment with a certified fitting station closest to you.
The installation is free.