Need advice on a situation

[MrsPear]

I would report it. Maybe I'm mean but looking on this thread people have shared stories where their loved ones died from not wearing a seatbelt in an accident and I can't even imagine that pain. On my 12th birthday (not that it matters that it was my birthday but it just happened to be) a girl in my class was killed in a crash, and she wasn't wearing a seatbelt. Nor was her 10 year old friend and she was killed too. And so was the driver. 2 other 14 year old girls from my school were injured and one spent time in a coma in a critical condition. It was awful. They might not have much money (or it seems they do) but they need to make their car as safe as possible and it is not acceptable as a regular mode of transport.

 

[wannabemomy37]

Definitely report it...
Even if they were homeless and living out of their car, I'd still report them as it's a safety issue here and it is definitely breaking the law on more than one account.
No leeway here if you ask me, that's just poor judgement and poor parenting NO EXCUSES!

 

[MrsHedgehog]

Personally I wouldn't get involved. That's the decision they have chosen to make, I'd just let them get on with it. (Although I wouldn't want to be in their shoes of the police did stop them.)

They have made a bad choice in terms of road safety and the law but I don't view their actions as so bad they need to be reported. Its not actual abuse of a child or anything that requires intervention.

I feel a bit like a previous poster, I have seen things like this as commonplace in other countries, so it doesn't really shock me. In fact this was pretty normal even in this country when I was growing up. Maybe they don't know the rules about car seats these days. I know quite a lot of my family were quite shocked when I was telling them how long kids have to stay in car seats.

Don't get me wrong, I don't condone it. I just wouldn't get involved myself.

The thing is that our roads are now so much more dangerous, there are more cars on the roads, cars are faster, there are many people who use mobile phones while driving or other distractions. Accidents are more common and more serious than they were when we were young and therefore car safety is more important. We used to sit 4 in the back of our car, me and my sister sharing a seatbelt and occasionally there'd be someone in the boot too! I'd never consider doing that now.

 

[Sambatiki]

I would report it... it might be the parents decision to take the smaller car and be unsafe but its not the kids fault, why should they be at risk because of their parents

How would you feel if something did happen and you hadn't reported it?

 

[liz1985]

I would report it to the police. However even though it is illegal its quite hard to get anyone to do anything about it. I work in a nursery and we see quite similar things. We report each instance and every time we get told something different, if report to the police we get told to ring ss, or vice versa. Sometimes we get told they cant do anything unless they catch them, sometimes we're told not to let them leave other times we have to let them leave for them to do anything. We always make the report though.

 

[caz_hills]

Could you send a note to them (maybe not saing it's from you) so that you alert them to it and your worries? That would really worry me too - even if you think you're a safe driver, you cannot rely on others to be safe and that is the worry.

I'd suspect the Police would say they need to see them do it but maybe if you wrote them a note and dropped it through their door, it might make them think it through again?