Car crashes leading cause of child deaths in the Philippines –PSA

Based on the data from the Philippine Statistics Authority, car accidents were the number cause of death of children aged 1 to 18 from 2006 to 2015, according to Dano Tingcungco's Monday report on 24 Oras.

Atty. Daphne Marcelo of Imagine Law said in 2017, the PSA recorded more than 1,226 child deaths due to car accidents.

With this, the group supported the full implementation of the Child Safety in Motor Vehicles Act.

“[A]t least 3 children per day and take note, this number has almost doubled since we first have been advocating for the passage of this law back in 2017,” Marcelo said.

As part of the full implementation of the act, children aged 12 years and below will be prohibited from taking the front seats in private vehicles and instead be mandated to be seated in child restraint systems (CRS) or car seats starting Tuesday, February 02, 2021.

The law, signed by President Rodrigo Duterte in February 2020, mandates that children aged 12 and below use the CRS and are only allowed to take the front seat if they meet the 4'11' height requirement and use a seat belt.

Under the implementing rules and regulations of the law, drivers found in violation will be fined P1,000 for the first offense; P2,000 for the second offense; and P3,000 and a one-year suspension of the driver's license for the third and succeeding offenses.

Those who are exempted are cases that would put the child in greater danger such as during medical emergencies when the child transported has a medical or developmental condition or other similar circumstances. — Ma. Angelica Garcia/DVM, GMA News