The history of baby on board signs
The idea was born from the personal experience and desire of American, Michael Lerner, a former real-estate investor.
It all started in 1984, when Michael drove his 18-month-old nephew home for the first time. He had to negotiate busy traffic, with motorists tailgating and cutting him off throughout the trip. “For the first time, I felt like a parent feels when they have a kid in the car,” he said.
Around the same time, he was introduced to sisters Patricia and Helen Bradley. The sisters had seen a version of this sign in Europe and tried to market it back in the United States, with limited success.
Michael saw a business opportunity in safety signs for car windows and struck up a licensing deal for the rights to the product from the sisters. He founded the company Safety 1st and, using his contacts in the retail industry, he started pitching to big department stores.
The first 'Baby on board' sign was produced in the same year and within a month 10,000 were sold. Demand continued to ramp up and soon the company was selling 500,000 signs a month.
Many people have come to think a ‘baby on board’ sign is there to alert emergency services that a small child could be in a vehicle (and potentially overlooked), but NSW police have confirmed this is not the case.
"The sign is not for emergency services, but more of a notice to other drivers. Anyone using these signs must ensure they are not obstructing the driver's view," a spokesperson for NSW Police said.
According to Safety 1st, the idea behind the 'Baby on board' sign was to “encourage drivers to use caution when approaching cars with younger passengers”.
Over the years, millions of parents have purchased the sign worldwide, with various copies and imitations created, but the original yellow signs are still produced today.
Stickers and warning signs are still used on vehicles to identify potential hazards or to provide additional care. Some of these include:
Do you take notice when you see a baby on board sign? As a parent, do you think this has made your trip safer? We'd love to hear your thoughts. Share your experience and join the conversation with us on Facebook.