Child safety advocates at Intermountain Children’s Health are seeing a rise in the number of parents unknowingly purchasing counterfeit car seats online for their children. Today, advocates from Intermountain Health, the Healthy Living Institute at UMC, and Safe Kids Clark County spoke on this dangerous rise and keeping kids safe in vehicles.

These types of seats are almost always purchased online and are enticing because of the steep discount in price compared to major brands. What often confuses parents is that these seats are found on the websites of major national retailers through third-party sellers.

“It’s hard to tell a car seat is counterfeit from a small picture online, and many parents think they found a great deal from a major retailer,” said Michelle Jamison, community health program manager at Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital. “Once they realize there’s a problem and try to return it, the site they got it from has already been taken down.”

For many years, Intermountain Primary Children’s has offered both in-person and virtual car seat checks to help educate parents about proper installation and correct use of car seats.

Jamison says that’s where caregivers started noticing more of these counterfeit seats popping up.

The types of counterfeit car seats caregivers are starting to see more of look legitimate and can cost hundreds of dollars. But many of these are missing key components that keep children safe in a crash, and they worry that using these seats could have deadly consequences.

They say the best way to avoid counterfeit car seats is to buy directly from the manufacturer’s website or go to a store in person to purchase the seat. All these models will be legitimate and meet safety standards.

“Parents may think an in-store purchase is more expensive but what they’re really getting is the peace of mind their child’s car seat is safe,” said Jamison. “While some models are pricey, there are less expensive ones that are still crash tested and safe.”

There are several things required on car seats to meet stringent federal safety standards, and parents should look closely to see if any are missing to know if it’s counterfeit.

All car seats are required to have a manufacturers label which includes the name of the car seat, date of manufacture, branding, model number, and expiration date.

This information is used to help register your car seat, which allows manufacturers to notify you of any recalls. Counterfeit car seats don’t have the number and make it ineligible to register.

“Thank goodness we have only seen this a few times, but we really want to make the public aware that this could happen. If you have any questions, you can bring your car seat to one of our local car seat check up events and have it checked by a certified technician. You can find these events by looking on our website at safekidsclarkcounty.org,“ said Jeanne Marsala, executive director of Safe Kids Clark County.

“We also want to remind parents that 8 out of 10 car seats are also installed improperly, so you should always have your seat checked by a certified Child Passenger Safety technician,” Marsala added. “In the last few months, we have seen a rise in serious car crashes involving children. We are finding that in many of these the child has been graduated to the seatbelt prematurely. In other words, they were at an age, weight and height where they should have still been seated in a booster seat. In addition, some of the seatbelt age children have put the shoulder belt portion behind their back or under their arm. It is extremely important for the children to always wear the seatbelt going across their chest to give them optimum protection.”

Parents and caregivers can also schedule complimentary car seat inspections and installations with the Healthy Living Institute at UMC.

The Healthy Living Institute at UMC houses one of the largest car seat programs in Nevada, assisting up to a hundred families per month with vital passenger safety education among other injury prevention programs.

“In addition to the typical installation mistakes, we are starting to see a greater number of these counterfeit and foreign car seats,” said Amy Runge, clinical manager of the Healthy Living Institute at UMC.

“As home to Southern Nevada’s only designated pediatric trauma center, UMC Children’s Hospital sees an alarming amount of children severely injured each year because they are not restrained properly. We are proud to have a robust car seat program with certified passenger safety technicians to assist families both inside the children’s hospital and through daily appointments at the Healthy Living Institute,” Runge added.

To meet safety standards car seats in the U.S. must also include warning labels written in both English and Spanish. They can be found on the back of the car seat but are also required in the area near where the baby’s head goes at the top of the seat.

Counterfeit car seats are often missing the labels, or they’re written in another language. Sometimes these labels have grammatical errors, and the wording doesn’t make sense.

Experts note a missing chest clip is an immediate sign a car seat isn’t safe. They’re required in the United States but not in every country, which is why counterfeit seats usually don’t have them.

“If you determine that you have a counterfeit car seat, stop using it immediately and contact the retailer to notify them that they sold a counterfeit,” Jamison said. “You may be able to recover the cost of the seat if you used a credit card or purchased through a major retailer.”

Parents can also report it through STOPfakes.gov, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) or the U.S. Department of Commerce via their contact form.

They should also submit a report through their state’s consumer protection agency. 

For help with evaluating or installing your car seat, find a technician near you, schedule an appointment with the Healthy Living Institute at UMC by calling 702-383-SELF or attend a Safe Kid’s event at safekidsclarkcounty.org.

For more child safety tips, go to intermountainhealth.org/childrenshealth.

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As the temperatures are well above 100 degrees in Southern Nevada, safety experts at Intermountain Health are urging drivers to never leave a child in a vehicle – even for a minute – and offering free tools to help drivers prevent injury or even death from a child overheating in a hot car.

“We want everyone to ‘Stop. Look. Lock.’ before leaving the vehicle to prevent accidental injury or death to a child,” said Michelle Jamison, children’s health program manager with Intermountain Children’s Health. “The inside of your vehicle can heat up very quickly. In just 10 minutes, a car can heat up by 20 degrees and become deadly. Drivers must be vigilant and use visual aids and tools this summer to prevent tragedy.”

The Intermountain Children’s Health team is offering free “Forget Me Not” window clings to help drivers remember a child is in the car. A vehicle escape tool also will be given to first responder teams in Clark County this summer, to distribute while supplies last.

Every year, nearly 40 children across the country die after being left in a hot vehicle. In Nevada, 14 children have died in hot vehicles between 1998 and 2022, and others have suffered heatstroke and other injuries in close calls.

Safe Kids Clark County have also been working to address heat safety with kids and cars and teamed up with Findlay Auto Group to show the dangers. Together they have used a temperature device to educate the public on how the outside temperature does not show what the reality is on the inside. For example, while the temperature in the morning could be just at 87 degrees in the sun, the inside of the car could be at a blistering, and potentially lethal, 147 degrees and climbing.

“These kinds of tragedies are 100 percent preventable,” said Erin Breen, Board President of Safe Kids Clark County. “That’s why we’re calling on everyone to work together to help protect kids from this very preventable tragedy. Whether you are a parent or caregiver, police officer, EMS provider, or just a concerned bystander, you can help save lives.”

Hot car tragedies can happen to anyone. They can occur when a caretaker forgets a child is in the car. This can be due to fatigue or change of routine – common for families during summer break and vacations – that push a person’s brain into autopilot, making it easier to forget.

A child’s body temperature can increase three to five times faster than an adult’s body temperature. Cracking a window has very little effect on the temperature inside the car.

“It only takes a few minutes for danger to begin to set in for a child’s body, especially for an infant,” said Dr. Agatha Formoso, Intermountain Health Pediatric Physician. “Heatstroke begins when a child’s core body temperature reaches about 104 degrees, and a child can actually die when their core body temperature reaches 107 degrees.”

Additionally, 1 in 4 hot car deaths happen when an unattended child gains access to a vehicle, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

“If you see something, say something,” said State Trooper Shawn Haggstrom, PIO for Nevada State Police Highway Patrol Division. “If you see a child or a pet unattended in a vehicle, call 911 immediately. Slow down, buckle up and always check your vehicle prior to exiting. So, both you and your loved ones can enjoy this wonderful summer ahead.”

Here are some ways to prevent hot car injuries from Intermountain Children’s Health Team and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration:

• “Stop. Look. Lock.” when parking a vehicle.

• Forget-Me-Not / Spot the Tot window clings are available from Intermountain Community Health Children’s Health by request, while supplies last, by emailing PCHHOTDL@imail.org with your name, mailing address, and desired quantity (maximum 10 per person).

These two-sided window clings go on the driver’s door window where they can be seen. They remind drivers to “Spot the Tot” by walking around the vehicle and checking for kids before backing out. Inside the vehicle, the sticker states “Forget Me Not,” which is a reminder to check the back seats before getting out of the vehicle.

• Resqme keychain car escape tools will be given to first responder teams in Clark County this summer, to distribute while supplies last. The tool comes with a keychain and visor clip, which can be quickly removed and used to break a window or cut a seatbelt to free a child.

Here are some additional tips from experts to prevent hot-car injuries:

• Never leave your child alone in a vehicle – even for a few minutes. It’s never a guarantee you will be right back.
• Make it a habit to always look in the back seats before getting out of your vehicle.
• Keep vehicles locked and keys out of the reach of children.  Curious children can get into unlocked vehicles and then often can’t get themselves out.
• Keep a visual reminder that a child is with you, like a stuffed animal or diaper bag in the seat next to you.
• Place something you’ll need when you arrive at your destination, like your phone, bag, or cell phone in the back seat. That way, when you reach for the item, you’ll likely see the child.

For more information about child well-being, safety and injury prevention tips, visit primarychildrens.org/safety. Learn more about Intermountain and find providers at intermountainnv.org.

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