TRL launches child safety centre

5 January 2011

The UK's Transport Research Laboratory (TRL) has launched a Child Safety Centre. The Centre collates TRL's expertise in all areas relating to children travelling in vehicles with a one-stop-shop for industry, retailers and consumers.

An important addition to the service is a 5 star rating scheme for child seats, which offers an objective an independent rating of a child seat's capabilities. This is good news for consumers and retailers as the scheme can help them select products to suit their needs.

Each seat tested is given an overall star rating based on tests assessing the front and side impact performance and usability. As soon as a manufacturer is ready, the results are published on the TRL website. They can also be found on the product and in-store. 

TRL says manufacturers are actively improving their products to demonstrate their performance under the scheme.

The Child Safety Centre also helps manufacturers and retailers with guidance on areas including legislation, test procedures, consumer information and training. For more information, visit the TRL Child Safety Centre home page.