Do I Need A Child Safety Kit?

Nothing is worse for a parent than receiving an America’s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response (AMBER) Alert for their child. While we don’t want the unthinkable to happen, we must be prepared for anything.

Child abductions are an increasing concern and child safety experts advise parents to be prepared with a child safe kit. However, you must be wondering, do I need a child safety kit with so many scams around?  To answer that question, you must thoroughly understand these child identification kits. 

What’s Inside A Child Safety Kit?

A child safe kit is an information packet containing essential details about your child. It includes the following:

• Basic information card:
  • Full Name (first, middle, and last)
  • Nicknames
  • Birthdate
  • Age, Weight, Height, and Sex
  • Hair Color and Eye Color
  • Ethnicity
  • Unique and identifying features (glasses, birthmarks, scars, piercings, etc.)
  • Medical Information (doctor’s name, medications, allergies, blood type, etc.)
  • Emergency Contacts (Including a current address)
  • Fingerprints (You can use inkless fingerprints or a black inkpad)
  • Other notable physical characteristics to help identify your child
• Most recent colored photo of your child (Candid photos are good since they show your child in a natural setting.)
• DNA samples (They can be nail clippings, hair strands, bloody bandages, cheek cell samples, etc.)

Keep this information inside an envelope or a packet and store it away with other necessary documents in a safe place that you can access in case of an emergency. Hopefully, you never have to access this kit. 

The Purpose of Child Identification Kits

We hope this never happens but in case your child goes missing, a child safe kit will help law enforcement officials locate your child more efficiently. If you suspect your child has been abducted, call 911 immediately.

Unlike adults, you don’t need to wait 24 hours before a child is considered missing. An AMBER alert will be issued, and police officers will immediately scout the area and look for your child. 

To help their search, the police will require basic information and other identifying details about your child. A child-safe kit will be handy since you can turn it over and get the search going quickly. 

Where To Buy Child Safe Kits?

A child safe kit is normally available for free at your local police department. You can just request for one, bring it home, and complete it with your child. There are also printables available for free in the Internet that you can download and use.

However, if you want to purchase low-cost child safety kits, you can do so from legitimate retailers. Just be wary of scams who pretend to give you a free child-safe kit in exchange for personal information or an insurance sales pitch.

Don’t give your personal information or your child’s information online or over the phone. Scammers will probably ask you for your personal information in connection with an identification kit for children.  

If you decide to go the DIY route, your biggest concern may be getting DNA samples of your child. The process is very simple. Hair strands and nail clippings can be used as DNA samples. Ensure they are kept in a clean, labelled envelope. 

If you want a cheek swab, you can easily do this using cotton swabs. Just get a clean swab, remove one tip, then run it over your child’s cheeks and gums. Let it air dry and don’t let it come in contact with anything else.

Once dry, secure the sterile swab in an envelope for safekeeping. If this sounds too complicated for you, just get nail clippers and cut your child’s nails to get nail clipping samples. 

Are Child Safe Kits Worth It?

Every parent wants their child to be safe. The peace of mind that comes from knowing your kids are safe is priceless. We can’t watch out for kids all the time especially if they’re out playing with friends and we’re busy with our day-to-day tasks. It’s important to take precautions, like assembling a child-safe kit, to keep them safe. 

The AMBER Alert system has recovered 1,144 abducted children as of May 2022. Child safety kits play a big role in making this system seamless and fast. 

For more articles about child safety, you can visit our blogs at Be-Safe.