The Dangers of Pets in Cars

 Posted on October 18, 2013 in Personal Injury

Pets are essentially additional members of the family, dogs and cats are like additional sons and daughters or brothers and sisters, so it is important to keep them safe on the road like any other family member. Restraints have been specifically designed to put in cars to help protect dogs, and although these restraints are not required to keep pets safe, they are recommended. Recently, however, these restraints were proven to not work as well as everyone had hoped. The Center for Pet Safety has been conducting tests on these restraints and it was this organization that has found the lack of safety for pets within these restraints. A study done by the insurance company AAA found that in 2011, only 16 percent of dog owners used these restraints for their pets when they were in their vehicles. This study was published in Automotive News. As for the safety testing, the results are not conclusive, but have so far come out negative for the dog dummies. What has been so far concluded is that dogs will still most likely suffer from serious injuries or death. The study also found that pets, even in these restraints, becomes more hazardous to people in the cars when they are in accidents. Pets tend to be propelled from their seat and hit people, injuring both the pet and person. The restraints have also been found to not be strong enough for heavy dogs and could potentially choke the dogs in the event of a crash as well. Not only are dogs at the risk of being harmed inside a car when it crashes, they are also very likely to cause a crash by distracting the driver. Keep your pet safe by keeping him or her away from your car as much as possible. Contact an Illinois accident attorney if you have been involved in an accident with your pet for assistance. Attorneys at the Mevorah & Giglio Law Offices will help you through the proceedings should the incident lead to a court case in Illinois today.