Can a ten year old sit in the front of the car...

purplepatch

.... where there is a passenger airbag?

My DH always sits stepson in the front when picking him up. The airbag can't be switched off. He doesn't have a booster seat anymore as he's taller than the requirement.

I just read this on netdoctor website

If your child is younger than 12 years, they must never sit in a front-seat with an active airbag in front of them.

DH likes to be able to chat to him which is obviously easier when he's in the front, so I feel like a bit of a party pooper suggesting he goes in the back. They have to travel on the M25 for part of the journey so it's not like it's a short trip down quiet roads.

Just wondering where the netdoctor statement comes from as it sounds pretty definite, like there is some law. Does anyone know for sure?

Nikkisun

Legally they can sit in the front but many car manufacturers advise not to put under 12's in the front where an airbag is fitted.

http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/roads/vehicles/vssafety/airbags

bestpud

How tall is he? Some 10 year olds are as tall as an average adult anyway!

purplepatch

No, he's not very big, maybe taller than average... don't really know as never see him with anyone his own age.... but he's quite scrawny, defo nothing like an adult build.

Something else I just read said that even over 12s and adults should always make sure the seat is as far back as poss as they can cause serious injury.

Makes you wonder how much safer you are having them than not.

pukkamum

Air bags can cause nasty injuries to adults and children alike it's not just about size when they go off the powder inside them used to inflate them can cause nasty burns so i would say don't do it no matter how big they are x

purplepatch

Yes I agree, to me it's a no brainer, my girls won't be going in the front until they are adult sized. I told dh and he wasn't happy about it as he likes his chats with him, so I will leave it up to him, at least I've warned him.

The full netdoctor thing is here, in case anyone interested. Scroll down to the bit about why airbags are dangerous for children half way down. Apparently they were designed for adults weighing "about 75kg" which is around the 12 stone mark.

:eek:

Jet

Thanks for bringing this to my attention. I have a smaller than average 10 yr old who sits in the front and has done so for about 6 months. Somewhere in my mind I thought he would be safer in the front with an airbag rather than in the back without one. Just goes to show how wrong you can be!

purplepatch

Jet wrote: »

Thanks for bringing this to my attention. I have a smaller than average 10 yr old who sits in the front and has done so for about 6 months. Somewhere in my mind I thought he would be safer in the front with an airbag rather than in the back without one. Just goes to show how wrong you can be!

Glad to have helped. Hope you don't get too much grief when he finds out he's back in the back seat!:D

patchwork_cat

Almost all the children at our school sit in the front. I have never given this a second thought and my children have always sat in the front from tiny once out of rear facing baby seats. Is this a real problem or a hypothetical one? My daughter doesnot sit close enough to the dash to be suffocated by an airbag.

I wonder what the implications of airbags are for a short !!!! 5 ft 2 like me driving, if they can suffocate a child then I would have thought it could suffocate me too.

moneypooh

In Europe they have to be at least 14yrs old, irrespective of size (I think)

TangledMemories_2

My 11 year old brothers sit in the front of my car, but when they do, I deactivate the passenger airbag.