27/07/2012
A near miss
We at Duck2Water are never going to leave our kids unattended in the car again, not even for a moment – well, that’s if the keys are in the ignition anyway.
This resolution follows the recent ordeal of a 28-year-old German mother who left the kids in her Peugeot as she loaded the shopping into the boot.
She said, "I put the key in the ignition to use the electronic button to open the boot and load up the shopping, and I left it there as the engine was not running.”
Well, so far, so good, but it is what happened next which caused alarm. As the mother moved round to the backseat to buckle up her toddler, her older son (not pictured) got behind the wheel and turned on the ignition.
Before she knew it the car was heading towards the sea – yes, the sea! – because the car was parked on Dusseldorf harbour.
In a sight which was reminiscent of the Italian Job, the car came to a standstill precariously perched between land and sea.
"If it had gone over the edge it could have been a disaster, instead my son had a very valuable lesson and the car was not damaged. But either way I will be more careful with the ignition keys in future,” said the mother.
Yes, and so will we all, including everyone at Duck2Water car insurance HQ.
This resolution follows the recent ordeal of a 28-year-old German mother who left the kids in her Peugeot as she loaded the shopping into the boot.She said, "I put the key in the ignition to use the electronic button to open the boot and load up the shopping, and I left it there as the engine was not running.”
Well, so far, so good, but it is what happened next which caused alarm. As the mother moved round to the backseat to buckle up her toddler, her older son (not pictured) got behind the wheel and turned on the ignition.
Before she knew it the car was heading towards the sea – yes, the sea! – because the car was parked on Dusseldorf harbour.
In a sight which was reminiscent of the Italian Job, the car came to a standstill precariously perched between land and sea.
"If it had gone over the edge it could have been a disaster, instead my son had a very valuable lesson and the car was not damaged. But either way I will be more careful with the ignition keys in future,” said the mother.
Yes, and so will we all, including everyone at Duck2Water car insurance HQ.
Image © Leonid Mamchenkov via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence
Labels: backseat, car insurance, engine, ignition, key, Peugeot, wheel
29/06/2012
Airbag seatbelts from Ford
Having airbags for the front passenger and driver is all very well and good, but what about the backseat passengers?
It’s quite rare, in my opinion, to have any safety equipment ready to leap into action to save backseaters from injury in a collision.
Well, next year Ford will be offering inflatable seatbelts for backseat passengers as an extra – which will probably cost around £250.
Initially the belts will be available only in the Mondeo, but the company plans on having it available in all of their family cars eventually.
The seatbelts, which will act as airbags for anyone in the rear of the vehicle, are safe for use with a booster seat and wil fully inflate in 40 milliseconds.
Hopefully this will lead to a reduction in the number of whiplash, back and head injuries suffered annually in the UK.
The inflatable belts have already been available to the American public since late last year, and apparently the company states that so far 40% of customers have elected to have the safety extra.
I’m not surprised! Changing the paintwork colour of a Ford Mondeo can cost anything from £200 to £545 – with that in mind £250 for something which will protect someone from suffering harm in a crash is a very good price!
It’s quite rare, in my opinion, to have any safety equipment ready to leap into action to save backseaters from injury in a collision. Well, next year Ford will be offering inflatable seatbelts for backseat passengers as an extra – which will probably cost around £250.
Initially the belts will be available only in the Mondeo, but the company plans on having it available in all of their family cars eventually.
The seatbelts, which will act as airbags for anyone in the rear of the vehicle, are safe for use with a booster seat and wil fully inflate in 40 milliseconds.
Hopefully this will lead to a reduction in the number of whiplash, back and head injuries suffered annually in the UK.
The inflatable belts have already been available to the American public since late last year, and apparently the company states that so far 40% of customers have elected to have the safety extra.
I’m not surprised! Changing the paintwork colour of a Ford Mondeo can cost anything from £200 to £545 – with that in mind £250 for something which will protect someone from suffering harm in a crash is a very good price!
Photo © Criterion via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence
Labels: air bag, backseat, crash, driver, Ford, inflatable seatbelt, injuries, passenger, safe, vehicle, whiplash
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