Children's car seats should be fitted only after carefully reading the instruction manual, a jury has recommended after an inquest into the death of a nine-month-old boy heard the seat was not fitted properly after being sold with no instruction manual.
Harvey Desmond Burns, Kilnagurteen, Macroom, Co Cork, died after a collision between the car driven by his mother, Deborah, and another vehicle in Crossmahon, Lissarda, Co Cork, on June 27th, 2006.
Harvey was found strapped into his Nania Luxe car seat which had been thrown forward against the back of the front passenger seat. He was brought to Cork University Hospital but died the next day from a serious brain injury.
Ms Desmond told Cork Coroner's Court how she had bought the child seat at Kiddiemart in Bandon in January 2006. She had seen a display model in the shop and asked were there more in stock. As there was not she bought the display model.
She did not receive any instruction manual nor was there any label showing how to fit it but the man in the shop came out and showed her how to fit it in her car. That was how she, her partner and her parents fitted it later.
Consulting engineer Dr Denis Wood examined the seat, manufactured by Team Tex of France, and found it had been fitted incorrectly. As a consequence when pressure was applied, it would tilt forward and pivot around.
Team Tex sales manager for Europe Phillipe Charlaix said the car seat was one of 26 manufactured that day and three had been quality checked and found to be safe and properly labelled in keeping with the company's policy.
All chairs were wrapped in a plastic bag with an instruction manual placed behind the harness, said Mr Charlaix. While the pictogram label gave some information on fitting the seat, the instruction manual was required to ensure it was fitted properly.
Assistant State Pathologist Dr Margaret Bolster said Harvey suffered a serious fracture to the skull and brain swelling and contusion consistent with him striking his head against the front passenger seat. There were remarkably few cases of children killed when strapped into properly secured seats, she added.
The jury returned a verdict of accidental death.
