The New 'Never Happens' Campaign Addresses Hot Car Deaths — & Its PSA Will Have You in Tears

Rita Templeton
·4 min read

Let me begin by saying that this is not a warning for other people. If you’re the parent or caregiver of a small child, this is a warning for you, no matter how responsible and attentive you are.

Hot car deaths are a far too common occurrence in the warm-weather months. And like most parents, I scoffed at the idea that I could ever be negligent enough to forget my child in the car. That was something only horrible, neglectful parents did … or so I thought.

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And then it happened to me.

Fortunately, my infant son wasn’t left alone in the hot car long enough to sustain any damage. But the truth — that I found out the hard way — is that hot car deaths are not a tragedy relegated to only “bad” parents. It can happen to anyone, and thinking you’re above it is simply dangerous.

That’s the powerful message of the new “Never Happens” campaign, a joint effort between the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Ad Council. “As parents, we say we’ll never do a ton of things, but ‘never’ happens all the time,” said Will Benham, Executive Creative Director of Chemistry, the creative agency behind the campaign. “To get parents to believe that child hot car deaths can happen to them, we reminded them of all the other ‘nevers’ that have already become a reality for them.”

The campaign’s tear-jerking PSA is hard to watch — as a mother who has done this exact thing, I could barely get through it — but so, so important.

Kids’ bodies warm at a rate 3 to 5 times faster than adults’ bodies. Heatstroke begin when the body temperature reaches 104 degrees … and if it reaches 107 degrees, it can be fatal. It sounds like it would take a lot for this to happen, but consider this staggering fact: according to the NHTSA, hot car deaths can happen even when your vehicle is parked in the shade — at temperatures as low as 60 degrees —even if the windows are cracked.

In the past 25 years, nearly 1000 kids have died from being in a hot car — that’s nearly 1000 deaths that were entirely preventable. The NHTSA has some valuable tips to help ensure this fate doesn’t befall any more of our little ones.

Never leave a child unattended in a vehicle for any length of time — period. Even if you’re just going to be gone for a minute, leaving your kid in the car is unsafe. Cracking the windows and parking in the shade does little to stop temperatures from rising quickly to dangerous levels.

Check your entire vehicle every time you get out. If ever you were going to start up a new habit, make it this one. Before you lock your doors and walk away, quickly scan the vehicle — especially the backseat — to make sure you’re not forgetting something important.

Make sure your childcare provider knows to call you if your child doesn’t show up. If your spouse, a co-parent, or another caregiver is responsible for dropping your child off at daycare, ensure that their care provider knows to give someone a heads-up if your child doesn’t come in.

Place an important personal item in the backseat so you’re sure to check. It can be your cell phone, your purse, your wallet … anything important that you generally never go anywhere without.

Store your keys safely. Make sure curious kiddos can’t reach the car keys.

Educate your kids. It might be a no-brainer to us, but kids might see a parked vehicle as a really cool hiding place or a refuge from an annoying older siblings. Teach them that they should never get into a car by themselves, under any circumstances.

Always lock your vehicle — even when you’re at home. Taking a fraction of a second to lock your car every time you get out does more than just ensure nobody steals your sunglasses or your loose change — it helps keep kids safe too. According to NHTSA, 25.8% of hot car deaths happened because a child gained access to an unlocked car and became trapped.

If you see a child unattended in a car, don’t be afraid to be “that person.” Your reaction can make all the difference for a kid in a hot car. If you see one, don’t waffle about what to do or worry that you’re overreacting; act immediately, call 911, and do what you can to get the child out of the vehicle as quickly as possible. It could save a life.

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