Dubai child occupant study unveils shortcomings in restraint practices

An observational study from the Monash University Accident Research Centre (MUARC) analysed how often families in Dubai restrained their children in vehicles.

Led by MUARC PhD candidate Inam Ahmad, the study analysed over 2000 vehicles for approximately 50 hours, and noted the occupants’ restraint use with children aged 10 years or younger.

Observing vehicles on the road  , The study found:
- Seatbelts were only worn by 60% of drivers and 53% of front-seat passengers.
- Over half of the children (52%) weren't restrained. Some were even sitting on adults' laps (8%).
- When kids were restrained, more than half (60%) were not appropriately restrained.
- Drivers who didn't wear their seatbelt were more likely to have at least one child who was inappropriately restrained  (28%) than to have all children appropriately restrained (9%)

These important findings highlight the difference between the recommended rules in Dubai and the prevalence of those following the rules.

Despite the legislation stating that children should use safety restraints, many simply aren't. This puts these children at an increased risk of injury if there's a crash, a known problem in the UAE, where motor vehicle crashes are a leading cause of child deaths.

The recommendations from the observational study are for greater enforcement of this legislation and awareness programs about the significant injury risks for unrestrained or inappropriately restrained child occupants in the UAE.

There needs to be better education about children using the right kind of restraints based on their age and size. The findings from this observational study have been shared with the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) in Dubai, to help create better safety campaigns and enact change in the transport systems in Dubai.

Research priorities should be to better understand the current restraint behaviours within families, by talking with parents about why they don't use restraints, and if they know about the rules regarding their children’s safety in vehicles.

Find the observational study here. 

MUARC Researchers:
Inam Ahmad
Brian Fildes
David Logan
Sjaan Koppel