RICHMOND, Va. (WWBT) – The Richmond Ambulance Authority (RAA) and AAA are ensuring the safety of your little ones as you travel for Thanksgiving.

AAA predicts more than 55 million people will travel for Thanksgiving this year, including over 1.4 million in Virginia.

RAA and AAA have teamed up to host car seat safety inspection stations to ensure the safety of families traveling out of town for the holiday or just running those last-minute errands.

“Nothing is more important than the safety of our children, and we cannot stress enough how important a correctly installed car seat is before any holiday trip takes place, no matter how far,” said Harold Mayfield, an RAA Child Passenger Safety Seat Technician.

Installing a child seat is a serious matter that is often not given the attention it deserves. According to the latest research from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), nearly half (46%) of car seats are misused. Using age- and size-appropriate car seats and installing them correctly are the best ways to reduce serious injury and death.

“Two of the most common mistakes people make when installing child passenger safety seats are installing them too loosely and incorrectly adjusting the harness. At this event, trained experts can assist caregivers in correcting these and other issues, ensuring that children are as safe as possible,” said AAA Mid-Atlantic spokesperson Morgan Dean.

To ensure car seat safety, RAA, AAA Mid-Atlantic, and Richmond Fire will hold inspection stations on the following dates and locations:

• Monday, Nov. 20 – Target – 7107 Forest Hill Ave Richmond, VA (3 p.m. – 5 p.m. )
• Tuesday, Nov. 21 – Walmart Supercenter – 2410 Sheila Lane Richmond, VA (3 p.m. – 5 p.m.)

Authorized Child Passenger Seat Safety Technicians will be available to check seats or boosters for those who attend.

For more information about RAA’s car seat safety program, click here.

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