Transporting children safely
What you should know about transporting children! An introduction to the subject Accident statistics have revealed that children are generally more
safely transported on the rear seats than on the front passenger
seat.
Children who are less than 1.50 m in height and who weigh less than 36 kg should,
under normal circumstances, sit on the rear seat (take note of any national legal
provisions which differ from this). They should be secured there by means of a
child restraint system or by using the existing seat belts depending on their body
size and weight. The child seat should be mounted behind the front passenger
seat for safety reasons.
The physical principle of an accident does, of course, also apply to children
⇒
page 135, The physical principle of a frontal collision. They differ from adults in
that their muscles and bone structure of children are not yet fully developed. Thus
children are exposed to increased risk of injury.
Children should be transported by using special child safety seats in order to re-
duce this risk of injury.
Only use child safety seats which are officially approved, suitable for children and
which comply with the standard ECE-R 44, which classifies child safety seats into
5 groups ⇒ page 149, Classification of child seats into groups. Child restraint sys-
tems which have been tested for conformity to ECE-R 44 standard have a non-de-
tachable test seal (a large E within a circle and below this the test number) attach-
ed to the seat.
We recommend that you use child safety seats from the ŠKODA Original Accesso-
ries range. These child seats were developed and also tested for use in ŠKODA
vehicles. They fulfil the ECE-R 44 standard. WARNING
Always comply with national legal provisions and instructions from the rele-
vant child safety seat manufacturer when installing and using a child seat
⇒
page 147. Note
National legal provisions, which deviate from the information contained in these
operating instructions, take precedence over the information contained in the op-
erating instructions.
Important safety information regarding the use of child safety
seats Correct use of child safety seats considerably reduces the risk of in-
jury!
WARNING
● All the occupants of the car - in particular children - must wear a seat belt
when the car is moving.
● Children who are less than 1.50 m in height and who weigh less than 36 kg
must not use a normal seat belt without a child restraint system, otherwise
this may result in injuries to the stomach and neck areas. Comply with the na-
tional legal requirements.
● One should never carry children, and also not babies! - on one's lap.
● You can transport a child safely in a suitable child safety seat ⇒
page 149,
Child seat!
● Only one child may be fastened with a seat belt into a child safety seat.
● Never leave the child sitting unattended in the seat.
● Certain outside climatic conditions can cause life-threatening tempera-
tures in the vehicle.
● Never allow your child to be transported in a vehicle without the use of a
suitable restraint system.
● Children should also never stand up in a vehicle or kneel on the seats
when the vehicle is moving. In the event of an accident the child will be
thrown through the vehicle and may as a result suffer fatal injuries, and also
injure other occupants. £ 147
Transporting children safely Using the system Safety Driving Tips General Maintenance Breakdown assistance Technical data
WARNING (Continued)
● Children are exposed to an increased risk of injury in the event of an acci-
dent if they lean forward or adopt an incorrect seated position when the vehi-
cle is moving. This particularly applies to children who are transported on the
front passenger seat if the airbag system deploys in the event of an accident.
This can result in severe or even fatal injuries.
● It is important that the belt webbing is properly routed if the seat belts are
to offer their maximum protection ⇒
page 137, How are seat belts correctly
fastened?. Pay particular attention to the information provided by the manu-
facturer of the child safety seat regarding correct routing of the belt. Seat
belts which are not correctly adjusted can themselves cause injuries even in
minor accidents.
● Safety belts must be checked to ensure that they are running properly.
One should also ensure that the belt is not damaged by sharp-edged fittings.
● It is essential to always switch off the front passenger airbag when attach-
ing a child safety seat to the front passenger seat where the child is seated
with its back facing in direction of travel ⇒ page 146
. If this is not done, there
is a risk of the child suffering severe or even fatal injuries if the front passen-
ger airbag is deployed. When transporting a child on the front passenger seat,
please comply with the appropriate national regulations regarding the use of
child safety seats.
Use of child safety seats on the front passenger seat Child safety seats should always be attached to the rear seats.
Fig. 130 Sticker on the centre column of
the body on the front passenger side. We recommend, for safety reasons, that you always mount a child restraint sys-
tems on the rear seats whenever possible. If you still decide, however, to use a
child safety seat on the front passenger seat then you must pay attention to the
following warnings in connection with the use of the airbag system on the front
passenger seat. WARNING
● Warning - particular hazard! Never use a child safety seat on the front pas-
senger seat in which the child is seated with its back facing the direction of
travel. This child safety seat is positioned in the deployment area of the front
passenger airbag. The airbag may cause the child severe, or even fatal injuries,
in the event of it being deployed.
● This is also clearly stated on the sticker which is located on the centre col-
umn of the body on the front passenger side ⇒ fig. 130. The sticker is visible
upon opening the front passenger door. For some countries, the sticker is also
affixed to the sun visor of the front passenger.
● It is essential to always switch off the front passenger airbag when a child
safety seat is nevertheless attached to the front passenger seat where the
child is seated with its back facing in direction of travel ⇒
page 145, Deactivat-
ing an airbag. If this is not done, there is a risk of the child suffering severe or
even fatal injuries if the front passenger airbag is deployed. When transport-
ing a child on the front passenger seat, please comply with the appropriate
national regulations regarding the use of child safety seats.
● If the front passenger airbag has been switched off by a specialist garage
using the vehicle system tester, the side and head passenger airbag remains
switched on. Please comply with any differing national legal regulations re-
garding the use of child safety seats.
● If a child safety seat in which the child faces in the direction of travel is
used on the front passenger seat, the front passenger seat must be moved
back and to the top fully. Move the seat backrest into the vertical position.
● You should have the front passenger airbag (or airbags) reactivated just as
soon as you no longer use a child safety seat on the front passenger seat. 148
Transporting children safely
