Video of Toddler 'Driving' SUV Sparks Safety Concerns Online

A video showing a toddler apparently steering an SUV while sitting on an adult's lap has sparked widespread concern on Chinese social media, with police warning that such behavior poses serious safety risks.

The widely circulated footage shows a man seated in the driver's seat of a moving SUV in an underground parking garage while a boy sits on his lap and holds the steering wheel.

In the video, the man can be heard instructing the child on which direction to turn. He also remarks that people were "astonished" by how well the boy could steer, suggesting the child may have been allowed to operate the vehicle before.

The video quickly drew criticism from netizens, many of whom questioned the adult's judgment and raised concerns about the potential danger to both the child and others nearby.

On June 10, a customer service representative for the vehicle's manufacturer told Huashang Daily's Dafeng News that the behavior was "extremely dangerous" and unacceptable regardless of whether any driver-assistance functions were activated.

The incident has also renewed discussion about similar cases involving young children behind the wheel.

In May, police in Changyang County, central China's Hubei Province, investigated a case in which a 3-year-old child was allowed to handle a vehicle's controls while sitting on a parent's lap on a public road. The driver was later summoned by traffic police, given a warning and fined 200 yuan (US$28). He also received a 3-point deduction on his driver's license for behavior that interfered with safe driving.

Police have stressed that the driver's seat is a vehicle's designated operating area and that any action that interferes with safe driving may constitute a traffic violation.