By the Numbers: Child Road Accidents in Metro Manila

There were 265 road accidents involving children in Metro Manila in 2020, despite most of the year spent under quarantine, the MMDA said, as a law requiring child car seats takes full effect.

Of the total, seven were fatal, the MMDA said. Still, the total in 2020 was 73.5% lower than 2019, with 1,000 cases, of which 23 were fatal while 977 were not. 

NEWS YOU CAN USE:

Child Car Seats Selling as Hot as Strollers

Got No Child Car Seat Yet? There Will Be No Arrests for Now

Big Kids Need Child Car Seats? LTO Says Tall Ones Exempted 

In both 2019 and 2020, Quezon City, recorded the highest number of cases. 

Child Car Seat Law for Mandatory Compliance on Feb. 2

In terms of type of collision, pedestrians are the most frequent victims. In 2020, there were 195 people (five died). In 2019, the record was 671 (13 died).

Authorities have defered the enforcement of the Child Car Seat Law to give way to an information campaign that was stymied by the pandemic.

Every year, some 1.35 million people die due to road accidents. For children aged 5 to 14, it's the leading cause of death, according to the World Health Organization.