LettersHong Kong must enact stricter child car seat legislation before more accidents happen

Readers discuss the dangers of ignoring safety requirements for children in cars, the narrow focus of Hong Kong education, a new grant in support of mental health, and more resources for STEM teaching

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A child sits in a baby seat at a charity bazaar at Hong Kong’s Victoria Park in November 2018. Under current legislation, children under three years old and sitting in the front seat must use child safety seats, while children sitting at the back and children above three years old are not required to do so. Photo: Winson Wong

Published: 11:30am, 2 Dec 2023

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In a serious traffic accident on Sunday, an eight-month-old baby was flung out of the car along with the domestic helper who was holding him. It is suspected that the car door flung open during the crash and the helper was not wearing a seat belt.

Private cars have consistently been the largest source of child passenger injuries in Hong Kong, according to a 2021 Legislative Council paper, averaging 162 traffic accidents annually in which a child passenger aged under 12 was hurt.

Under current legislation, children under three years old and sitting in the front must use child safety seats, while children sitting at the back and above three years old are not required to do so.

According to the Road Users’ Code, if the driver is driving a baby below 12 months old, there should be a carrycot or infant carrier for the baby. However, such requirements have not yet been enacted into law. In 2022, the government proposed legislation requiring private cars to install child safety seats for children aged seven or below, but the proposal is still under consideration.

In March, there was another accident involving child passengers, this time apparently caused by one of the children on board opening a car door during travel. A three-year-old boy, a four-year-old girl and a helper were injured. It was later revealed that the children in the car did not use a child harness or child safety seat, and the driver did not use the central lock or a baby lock for the car doors, such that the door could be opened easily.