February Is Round-Up Time Again! 

Drive Safe Hampton Roads holds Old, Used, Borrowed and Abused Child Safety Seat Round-Up February 2023

Hampton Roads, Va. (February 9, 2023) –For 34 years, Drive Safe Hampton Roads(DSHR)has joined forces with community partners to collect old, used and potentially unsafe child safety seats during the Child Safety Seat Round-Up program. This program also serves to educate parents and caregivers about the possible dangers of using car seats past the date recommended by the manufacturer, have been purchased secondhand, missing parts or have no traceable recall information. According to the National Highway Safety Administration, 755 children were killed in vehicle crashes in 2020 with 42% of them unrestrained.

For these reasons, DSHR and their community partners: Walmart, AAA Tidewater Virginia, Hoffman Beverage Co., Waste Management of Virginia, and the Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters will be encouraging everyone to “round-up” their old child safety seats and turn them in for a “reward” throughout the month of February. The goal for the Round-Up is to convince parents & caregivers to turn in their old, used or potentially dangerous safety seats so that they are not resold or given to unsuspecting parents or caregivers for use.

As an incentive to turn in old safety seats, Walmart is providing a $5 Walmart gift card for each seat turned in (limit 2 rewards per person). Safety seats can be dropped off at Walmart Supercenter select locations or at any of the eleven AAA Tidewater Virginia locations fromFebruary 1–28, 2023.

All collected safety seats will be recycled by Waste Management of Virginia, Inc. Not only will recycling these seats eliminate the potential danger to children, it will also provide positive benefits to the community by utilizing a “greener” alternative for disposal.

Virginia law requires all children under the age of eight to be properly restrained in an approved Department of Transportation (DOT) child restraint. This law applies to any driver, not just the parent or guardian, in any vehicle, on any highway in Virginia. In addition, all children ages eight through seventeen years of age must be properly restrained in a safety belt while seated in any seating position in a vehicle.

For more information: www.drivesafehr.org or call (757) 498-2562.

 * National Highway Safety Administration

Round-Up drop-off locations

About Drive Safe Hampton Roads: Drive Safe Hampton Roads (DSHR) is a non-profit regional coalition whose goal is to increase the community's involvement and awareness of traffic safety issues. For 33 years, Drive Safe Hampton Roads has been dedicated to preventing crashes, injuries, and fatalities on the region’s roadways. DSHR is the oldest, continuous traffic safety coalition in the Commonwealth. For more information: www.drivesafehr.org or call (757) 498-2562.