It’s an exciting time when your child gets their first scooter. But with it comes some risks and dangers. Lot so injuries such as fractures are caused when children go over uneven ground or struggle to maintain their balance. Collisions cause injuries too, either from the child bumping into objects or pedestrians. This article will look at how you can keep your child safe scooting.

Pick The Right Scooter

Probably the best place to start is with the scooter itself.

When searching for kids scooters make sure you consider what safety features it has. Look for scooters that have a robust frame, stable wheels and responsive breaks.

Scooter Maintenance

After making a purchase regularly check the scooter for signs of wear. It’s important that all the bolts are tightened, and the wheels are secured otherwise an accident is much more likely. With time and wear you might need to replace the grip tape.

Additionally, it’s a good idea to work on rider technique with our child too. Many of the problems with scooters are because they are not ridden correctly. Make sure they don’t ride their scooter too aggressively, whether its braking, turning or twisting.

It’s important to clean your scooter so its in prime condition and working safely and performing well. Get rid of any dirt between uses and if it gets wet make sure to dry it thoroughly.

Helmet

A helmet is an essential purchase, and no child should be out scooting without it. Many parents learn about the value of helmet use too late. A head injury can be very scary as you can see in this article about a child with a fractured skull falling from scooter. In a fall the helmet will take the impact instead of a poor child’s head. Make sure you the helmet they are using is correctly adjusted, so it fits well.

Protective Gear

You can also invest further in your child’s safety by buying them wrist and elbow guards. It’s also best to have close toe shoes to protect your feet. It’s all about minimising the chance of your child being hurt, bruised and cut. Prevention is always better than cure. It’s awful seeing your child injured so a little investment in protective gear is worthwhile.

Reflective Clothing

To be safe you need to make sure your child can be seen. Invest in reflective clothing for visibility. You can even buy reflective rucksacks. You want road users to be spotted by motorists, especially in low light situations.

Scooter Light

A scooter light will help children be seen by pedestrians and motorists. But also, it will help them see any obstacles coming up on route. A bump or hill can easily result in a fall if they were unprepared and did not balance themselves correctly.

Bell or Horn

A bell or horn are easy to attach to your kids scooters. Not only do children need to be seen to ensure their safety when scooting they also need to be heard. Having a bell or horn will let pedestrians know you are there.

Avoid Distractions

It’s important your child is aware of different distractions which could influence their concentration levels. Scooting whilst listening to music or chatting to friends can mean they are less focused on obstacles and other dangers ahead. This could increase their likelihood of having an accident and getting hurt.

Road Safety Lessons

Make sure you teach your child about road safety. They need to know how to cross roads without endangering themselves. Make them aware of the use of hand signals.

You can even book scooter safety lessons if you would prefer to leave it to the professionals. These lessons will give your children the skills to scoot safely, so they can stop when they need to and know how to navigate obstacles. They can also cover more advanced situations like tackling crowded pavements or managing blind corners.

Hopefully now you have a better understanding of how to keep your child safe scooting and can relax! Well until they decide to start driving that is.

Don’t let the worry of accidents put you off buying them a scooter, there are so many benefits of owning a scooter.