The Minister for Small Business, the Hon Bruce Billson, today announced important changes to the mandatory safety standard to increase protection for children travelling in motor vehicles.

The changes mean that the latest developments in child restraints for motor vehicles are available in Australia and the Standard will continue to provide a high level of protection for children and reduce the risk of injury in the event of crashes.

The Standard incorporates key safety elements of the latest version of the voluntary Australian Standard and permits the use of ISOFIX attachments.

The ISOFIX attachments allow the seat to clip into two rigid or flexible ISOFIX lower anchorage points at the back car seat, restricting the amount of movement between the child seat and the belt clip in the event of a crash.

About 1,000 children are seriously injured each year in motor vehicle incidents, with car crashes the most common cause of injury and death for children aged between 1 and 14 years.

I encourage all parents and carers to have an approved safety device fitted to their child’s car seat to help protect their loved ones and reduce injuries in the event of a crash.

The amendments to the Standard come after detailed consultation was carried out with industry by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.