Always on board: If an accident occurs on the road, ideally there will be a standardised first aid kit on hand with everything needed to treat minor injuries. A first aid kit like this – with bandages and other medical materials – can even save lives. In Germany and in other countries the first dedicated “on-board first aid kits” were launched on the market in the 1920s. Nowadays there are many such sets available as accessories.
Mandatory for the past 50 years: According to Bundesverband Medizintechnologie – the Federal German Medical Technology Association – a first aid kit has been mandatory in every newly registered vehicle in the Federal Republic of Germany since 1 January 1970. An amendment to Article 35 h of the German Road Traffic Licensing Regulation (StVZO) dating back to 1969 specified the details. It had already been mandatory for buses and coaches to carry a first aid kit since 1 August 1960. Soon the regulation was extended to all vehicles, not just newly registered ones: ever since 1 January 1972 all vehicles in the Federal Republic of Germany have had to carry a first aid kit. Article 37 of the German Democratic Republic’s Road Traffic Licensing Regulation also made on-board first aid kits mandatory for vehicles. Similar rules apply in many countries today.
Checked thoroughly: In Germany on-board first aid kits are also checked as part of the statutory inspection. According to the TÜV Rheinland testing authority, this became mandatory for the first time on 1 January 1971. After a lapse of attention to this detail for several years, checking whether a first aid kit is available in the vehicle has been a firm part of statutory inspections since 2012. Testing engineers have a close look at whether the first aid kit is complete and they also inspect materials’ best-before dates.
Box or pouch: The first ever first aid kits were kept in sturdy metal boxes, but over time plastic boxes and soft pouches made of a durable material have prevailed. In each case, first aid kits’ sterile contents are protected by individual packaging.
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