The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, “NHTSA” announced recently that nearly 800,000 child safety seats manufactured by the Dorel Juvenile Group are being recalled due to the locking mechanism in the harness creating potential safety issues. The recall covers booster, convertible and infant seats manufactured May 1, 2008 through April 30, 2009. The Dorel Juvenile Group (DJG) manufactures, Cosco, Maxi-Cosi and Safety First child safety restraint systems
The harness locking and release button in the affected safety seats does not always return to a locked position according to “NHTSA” and if the button is unlocked the shoulder strap can slip through the adjuster creating a loose and inadequate restraint. The company plans to give owners a kit with a lubricant to be put on the center front adjuster to prevent sticking. Until that is done, “NHTSA” states that owners can keep using the seats but should make sure the harness is properly adjusted and that the button is in the locked position.
One would think that proper testing of the locking and the release button during the design stage would have revealed potential problems and could have eliminated the potential safety hazards. Parents have enough to worry about and should not have to bear the responsibility of making the manufacturer’s product safe for its intended use.
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