Child seats provide protection

It was found that many child car seats were in "appalling" states of repair with some out of date, broken, incorrectly assembled or without adequate instructions.

Other child seats were sub-standard or incompatible according to the magazine research, which was carried out in the UK, Spain and Greece.

If they can't fit their own seats safely, they shouldn't expect customers to be able to do so. Helen Parker, Which? editor

Helen Parker, editor of Which?, said that the situation was unacceptable and she called for both the law and hire companies to make child safety their main priority.

"As the law stands, if customers have children, companies aren't obliged to provide a safe vehicle for them," she said.

"Hire staff need to know how to select and fit the appropriate seat for a particular weight and age of child.

"If they can't fit their own seats safely, they shouldn't expect customers to be able to do so."

Which? found that in the UK, fewer than half of the 29 companies questioned managed to provide a seat on the day it was requested.

Some suggested buying a seat for the day's car hire while of those which did have seats, only about half had ones that fitted the child and were in good condition.

The rest of the seats provided were said to be faulty or too old and unlikely to protect a child in a crash.

Even at 30mph, a child can be thrown forward with a potentially lethal force of 30 to 60 times its own body weight.

Safety facts In 2001, 40 children aged 0-11 were killed and 464 seriously injured In 2001,18 children aged 0-4's were killed and 167 seriosuly injured The morning and afternoon school runs are the peak times for accidents Even at low speeds, having your child in an incorrectly fitted seat could increase their risk of injury Source: UK Department of Transport

Worse results were found in Spain and Greece.

Trade organisation the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (BVRLA) said that providing seats was at the discretion of individual companies.

Advice on providing instructions and information on selecting and using the seat is supplied but is not made a requirement.