Baby Died In Hot Car - I forget my shopping - what can you do to remember?

We all forget things. I have left an umbrella behind in the car of a friend or a taxi to the airport. I once drove off leaving my teenager behind at school when he was loading up the car. I heard him slam the car door and thought he was in the car. But he had gone back to slam the car boot. Fortunately, I got no reply to my questions, stopped the car, looked back and saw him running after me frantically waving. No harm done.

But other people are not so lucky. I open the news and learn abut a death in a hot car.

An average of nearly forty children a year die inside cars. What can de done to prevent this?

Time to make it an offence to leave a child or pet in a locked car in hte USA. Put up a sign at supermarket entrance.

Suggestions to how to remember to take your child.

1 Warning reminders in car parks.

2 Warning reminders in cars.

3 Put your phone in your bag by the baby. If you think you might need your phone to hand in an emergency, alternatives could include leaving your shoe next to your baby, making your own handwritten or typed note, baby in car. Time for Mothercasre in the UK, to issue signs for the car.

End the news with reminders in hot weather. The temperature is ... do not leave chocolate on the back window, do not leave a baby or pet in the car.

People forget essential things all the time. They lose car keys. You don't want to lose your car keys with the baby inside.

Cars get stolen frequently. You don't want your car to be stolen with the baby inside.

But if you take the sleeping baby into the house in the car seat, that could also be a hazard.

Confession time
I left a bar of chocolate in a car. It melted. I had underestimated the heat and forgotten the chocolate. I don't do that again. With a child or pet you don't get a second chance.

How To Remember
The best and most unusal advice I saw:
1 leave a toy on the front seat to remind you that the baby is in the back.
2 Move the baby seat to the middle, not hidden behind the driver.
3 Buy a car seat alarm.

But you don't have children. How does this affect you?

The technology for alerts already exists. If you get into a car and don't do up your seatbelt, the car alerts you.

Set Alerts
The simplest alart is to set an alarm. If you know your journey taken ten minutes, set an alarm for nine or 15 to remind you to check on your child, or shopping.

Buy Alerts
Some alerts tell you that you have a passenger in the back when you open the driver's door. Others send a warning to your phone when you walk more than a certain number of feet.

One woman sais she bought car seat alarms or seats with alarms for her friends at a baby shower or a gift delivered when visitng a new mother or better still the mother to be. Garndaprents could also be given this gift, or give it to their children or children in law who are expecting a baby.

Some hire car companies supply car seats. Enquire about the seat's safety features and whether you need to buy an alarm.

An attempt was made to pass legislation but the law was not passed. Meanwhile there are sseveral items you can buy.

Some of the alarms have other functions, such as reminding you to remove your shopping or frozen food from the car.

An added incentive to buy one for yourself or others, or simply mention them to friends.

A simple solution is to set an alarm on your phone. Or to send a photo of the child dropped off to a whatsapp group of parents and granny

As they say, prevention is better than cure; forwarned is forearmed. Travel safely.

Useful websites
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7047435/Police-interview-mother-determine-left-baby-die-SUV-parked-AutoZone.html
https://myfox8.com/2019/05/18/baby-dies-after-being-left-inside-hot-car-while-parents-went-inside-store/
https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/medical/mom-shares-warning-about-car-seat-danger-after-her-toddlers-death/ar-BBPmE98
https://www.ohmyparenting.com/9-safety-warning-signs-and-labels-every-parent-should-not-ignore/2/
https://www.parents.com/parenting/better-parenting/advice/7-ways-to-not-forget-your-child-in-the-car/
https://www.fatherly.com/gear/best-car-seat-alarms/

Baby And Car Seat Alarms
https://www.kars4kids.org/safety-app/
http://ridenremind.com/

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer.

The Laws Are Different - Check Them

Problem
I was reading about accusations, apologies, pleading guilty and court cases in America.

In one case somebody says, 'All I want is an apology'. Another case: 'He never admitted his guilt.' 'He denied it!' One comment says, 'How can they deny it! The evidence is there for all to see!'

I read the comments and another reader has said:
The lawyer of the accused tells them to plead guilty so that they can plea bargain later and admit guilt in exchange for something else, a lighter sentence or dropping another charge.

I discussed this with somebody in the UK. They said, "In the UK the laws are different. A defendant will be advised by the lawyers to plead guilty, if they are guilty, and likely to be found guilty, because the penalties rise as you obstruct the court or cost money by making a longer trial to establish guilt.

In cases where a defendant claims to have been tortured, another case occurs. They might plead guilty to end the torture, then retract the confession in court. So things are not as straightforward as they seem at first glance.

In the UK laws can be established by precedent. A lawyer defending you might say, before or after a court case, that a previous trial the defendant was found not guilty in a certain set of circumstances. Therefore the lawyer, if you plead not guilty, will bring up the previous case to try to persuade the judge that it is a waste of time and public money persisting because the jury will follow the findings of the previous case. The defense lawyer will argue persuasively that the case cannot be proven.

The moral is, whether you are in a court or simply reading a newspaper article about a court case, check the laws at the place and time of the court case.

You might also recall the old saying, "Never explain, never apologise." (Was it Oscar Wilde who said that? Or a newspaper proprietor? One accused person said, 'Publish and be damned.')

Car Accident Claims
My instructions from my insurance company in the case of a car accident in the UK were that in the case of an accident you must never hastily apologise or admit guilt at the scene of the accident. You must simply give your name and address and insurance company details and let them establish guilt. The two insurance companies will argue it out between them.

All sorts of things can affect whether or not you are guilty. For examply, one person said after an accident, said 'It was our driver's fault. He was going too slowly in the slow lane.' Hwever, the truck driver collecting the damaged car said, the evidence is the car was hit from the back, so it's automatically the fult of the driver which hit the car in front.

That could compromise your insurance company. You need to check before you speak or judge.

Author, Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.