NRMA reveals huge safety problem with keyless entry cars
The NRMA has released a video showing how fast the temperature in your car can rise on a hot day.
The video was part of an experiment to see how hot a car can get if a child is accidentally locked inside.
Sharing the results Facebook, the road safety organisation found that over three consecutive days in November, the inside temperature of a locked car increased from 24°C to 42°C, from 28°C to 48°C and from 29°C to 43°C degrees all within less than an hour.
“Fortunately this was an experiment”
NRMA road safety expert Dimitra Vlahomitros said: “On the 28°C day the inside temperature reached 48°C, but our camera overheated at 45.5°C and stopped working – fortunately this was an experiment and not a real-life scenario with a child in that seat.”
The study comes after a record number of children were accidentally locked in cars during October.
NRMA data revealed a 21.5% surge in Roadside Assistance callouts to rescue babies and children locked inside vehicles.
Now, the NRMA is reminding parents to “pop it in your pocket” when juggling car keys with kids this summer.
“Parents need to be reminded that although it’s tempting to leave the kids in the car while quickly grabbing a coffee or paying for petrol, the risk of an accidental lock-in is too serious.
“If a child is stuck inside a car while the temperature is rapidly rising, they can very quickly become distressed, dehydrated and even die from organ failure,” said Dimitra.
Watch out for keyless entry features
In particular, the NRMA has noticed an increase in parents locking their keys in cars with keyless entry features.
NRMA Roadside Patrol Kosta Karavanas said, “With some car models, as soon as the key is inside the car and the door is shut, the car automatically locks, leaving shocked parents outside and children or pets inside.
“Even if you don’t think your car will self-lock with the key inside, don’t put yourself in the situation to find out, especially when kids are involved. We can’t always rely on technology to work.”
Suppose a parent does accidentally lock their kids in the car. In that case, Kosta says, “As soon as a call is made to the NRMA about a child locked in a car it’s immediately put to the top of our job list, regardless of whether they are Members or not, and we’ll get the car open within minutes.”
Tips to avoid locking your keys in the car
He also has some for parents to avoid this from happening.
- Open the windows before you put the shopping, kids or pets in the car.
- Before buckling the kids into seats, pop the keys in your pocket.
- If no pockets, put it on the roof as the car won’t start without the keys inside.
Read more:
