By Christopher Doering
WASHINGTON, Aug 28 (Reuters) - Parents who have grappled with securely fitting their child into a car seat will find the task easier beginning on Sunday, when automakers and car seat makers must follow new U.S. safety requirements.
The new system, called Latch (lower anchors and tethers for children), requires all makers of child car seats and automobiles to have technology that firmly and easily snaps together.
The new process, which takes less than a minute to complete, hooks three short straps -- one at the top and two at the lower corners -- from the child safety seat into anchors inside the car's upholstery, according to the federal government.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimated the Latch system could prevent as many as 50 deaths and 3,000 injuries each year. Currently, an estimated 80 percent of child car seats are installed incorrectly, contributing to motor vehicle crashes as the leading cause of death for children of all ages.
"Latch is a major step forward but it doesn't guarantee safety," said Dieter Zetsche, chief executive of Chrysler, a division of DaimlerChrysler AG.
"Parents still need to have their child safety seats inspected and learn the proper way to secure their children in them," he said.
Carmakers have been installing the new anchors since last September to help prevent children from lurching forward during an accident. Beginning on Sept. 1, most child safety seats will be required to have the fasteners to allow the Latch system to work.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said it launched an advertising campaign to make parents aware of the new safety requirements.
Some car seats not equipped with the Latch system can have it installed, but officials said that existing child seats that are properly installed are equally as safe.
"This is nothing that people need to go out and buy a new safety seat or a new car," said Jeffrey Runge, the administrator of the federal agency.
The Latch system works with forward and backward-facing seats, but it should not be used with a booster seat.
Latch will make it easier to strap a child into a car seat, but parents should also follow existing safety requirements such as placing a child in the back seat and checking that the safely seat harness straps are tight, the government said.
Parents can arrange to have a child safety seat inspection by calling 1-866-SEATCHECK.