Old, Used, Borrowed and Abused Child Safety Seat Round-Up

Hampton Roads, VA. (March 18, 2025) – For over 36 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. The goal for the Round-Up is to convince parents & caregivers to turn in old, used or potentially dangerous safety seats so they are not resold or given to unsuspecting parents or caregivers.

According to the National Highway Safety Administration (NHTSA), 1,129 children (aged 0-14) were killed in vehicle crashes in 2022 with 266 of them unrestrained. That is an average of 3 children killed and an estimated 429 injured every day in traffic crashes in the U.S.*

During this year’s Round-Up, 143 seats were collected. As an incentive, a $5 gift card was given as a “Reward” for each seat turned in. Safety seats were dropped off at Walmart Supercenter select locations or at any of the eleven AAA Tidewater Virginia locations from February 1–28, 2025.

All collected safety seats were recycled by Waste Management of Virginia, Inc. Not only does recycling these seats eliminate the potential danger to children, but it also provides 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, 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.