When I first started reading up on car seat safety as a preggo mama-to-be I was shocked at just how much there was to learn about proper car seat safety and even more surprised (horrified?) at how many parents were unknowingly putting their babes at risk every day. Turns out, there's a lot more to car seat safety than simply clicking a few buckles and then carting your babe around wherever you go. I quickly learned that when it comes to keeping babies safe in the car, Mad Eye Moody was right. Nothing but "CONSTANT VIGILANCE!" will do.
To help my fellow mamas and papas (or anyone who ever has a baby in their car) make sure their babies are safe, here's a handy list of do's and don'ts (complete with informative videos) when it comes to transporting your little one(s) in the car.
1. DO your research beforehand and make sure your car seat is properly installed
Make sure to read both your car seat and vehicle manuals before installing your car seat (or go read them right now if your car seat is already installed -- about 75% of car seats aren't installed properly so chances are there's something you could improve upon). I also highly recommend watching an installation video from a trusted source (ie a certified Child Passenger Safety Technician like The Car Seat Lady) -- they always help make things more clear for me. We found this video to be really handy when it came to installing our Chicco Keyfit 30. When you've finished installing your car seat it shouldn't move more than an inch in any direction when you tug on it. You can also get help installing your car seat from a local Child Passenger Safety Technician (CPST). These are people who are trained to correctly install car seats. You can find one near you here.
The safest place for your baby is snugly secured in their car seat in the back seat. Never install your child's car seat in the front passenger seat. All children 12 and under should ride securely buckled in the back seat. The middle seat in the back seat is the safest place to install your baby's car seat. One study found that children three and under were 43% safer in the middle seat. If, however, you have additional children or passengers riding in the back, it's recommended to put the person least protected (ie in a forward facing seat) in the middle seat. Check out this guide from the Car Seat Lady to learn more. PLEASE NOTE: not all vehicles will allow you to install your car seat using LATCH in the center position. I only recently discovered that our car doesn't allow LATCH installation for the middle seat. The lower anchors we'd been using for the last six months are actually only supposed to be used for the side seats. WHOOPS! So we reinstalled the base using our car's seat belt. Phewf! Check out this overview from the Car Seat Lady for more information about using LATCH in the center seat position.
3. DO learn how to correctly buckle your child in his/her car seat.
It's important that your baby is buckled in tight and snug in their car seat. If their straps are too loose the intense forces experienced in a car crash (the kind that can cause steel to ripple) could render your car seat useless. To make sure your baby's straps are tight enough, try the pinch test -- if there is enough material left at the shoulders that you can pinch a fold together, your straps aren't tight enough. Also, don't forget to check for slack around the legs! Often simply pulling the "tail" of the car seat to tighten the straps will get the shoulder straps nice and snug but will do nothing for the slack around the legs (don't worry, I've got a video coming up to show you how to fix this). Make sure the chest clip is correctly positioned, too. It should run from arm pit to arm pit. The straps should not be twisted, but rather lie flat against your baby. In addition, make sure your baby's head isn't tilted forward as this can restrict breathing. Instead, try positioning your baby's head to the side.
Just in case any (or all) of that was confusing, here's a fantastic video from the Car Seat Lady. Even if you feel like a car seat buckling pro, I highly recommend watching it.
4. DON'T endanger your baby by putting your car seat in an unsafe place.
Car seats are designed to be used in the car and if you have a travel system maaaybe snapped or buckled into your stroller. That's about it. Car seats are not meant to sit on top of a shopping cart (even though you see parents doing this every. single. time. you go to the grocery store. Don't do it! I highly recommend baby wearing instead), they're not a makeshift crib (this news story was enough to scare me into never letting my baby sleep for long periods of time in her car seat), a bouncer or a high chair. Never place your baby's car seat on elevated or uneven surfaces. For more info check out the video below from Baby Gizmo about How Not to Use an Infant Car Seat.
5. DON'T fall victim to fluff!
It's freezing cold outside and you and baby need to take a trip in the car. Bundling baby up in a puffy winter coat is actually a big safety hazard, as is using any kind of insert or muff that goes between your baby and the car seat straps (like the popular JJ Cole BundleMe). In the event of a crash, this "fluff" is compressed, making your baby's previously snug car seat straps loose enough to allow your baby to slip out.
Terrifying, eh? Instead of putting your baby in that puffy coat and your fuzzy car seat muff, dress your baby in tight fitting layers (fleece works great) and tuck a warm blanket OVER your baby if extra warmth is still needed. You can also put your child's coat on backwards over the straps after they are safely buckled into their car seat. Check out this post from the Car Seat Lady for more information about keeping your baby both warm AND safe in the car. She's got a great list of products that are safe to use with your car seat, too.
6. DO keep your baby rear-facing as long as possible
Your baby will likely outgrow his or her rear-facing infant carrier somewhere around their first birthday. This does not mean that they are now ready for a forward-facing car seat. In fact, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends children ride rear-facing until they are at least two years old. Because studies have shown that children are five times safer when they are rear-facing most experts encourage parents to keep their babes rear-facing for as long as their seat will allow, even past two years old if they can. Once your baby outgrows their infant carrier, invest in a convertible seat that allows you to safely transport your child in a rear-facing position for as long as possible. Check out this great rear-facing myths busters article from Car Seat for the Littles to learn more.
Although convertible car seats can be expensive, there is a car seat for every budget. Some more affordable brands include Cosco (the Cosco Apt 40RF Car Seat
is currently $59.99 on Amazon), Safety 1st (the Safety 1st Air Convertible Car Seat
is currently $84.99 on Amazon), Evenflo (the Evenflo SureRide DLX Convertible Car Seat is currently 89.98 on Amazon) and Graco
(the Graco My Ride 65 LX Convertible Car Seat
is currently $109 on Amazon). If you've got a bit more to spend, I recommend the Chicco NextFit Convertible Car Seat
or the Britax Boulevard ClickTight Convertible Car Seat
. Both are great seats with easy install features. We ended up getting a smoking good deal on an older model of the Britax Boulevard, the Britax Boulevard G4 Convertible Car Seat
. It doesn't have the cool ClickTight technology (which basically just makes it easier to install) but it's still a great seat. 6. DON'T forget, CONSTANT VIGILANCE. Mad Eye is watching.
All jokes aside, it really is important to be vigilant when it comes to car seat safety. I recommend double checking everything when you put your little one in the car and then it doesn't hurt to check once again. Double check that the straps are tight enough and that your chest clip is properly placed. Double check that your straps aren't twisted but lie flat against your baby. If you're using a base, double check that it hasn't become loose over time or been mistakenly unbuckled. Double check that your car seat is properly clicked in the base by pulling up on the handle to make sure the car seat connected securely. Double check, double check, double check!
I also recommend following someone like the Car Seat Lady on social media (can you tell I'm a fan?). People like her vigilantly post car seat safety tips, informational resources and recall notices. She also has lots of tips for fitting three car seats across. I've learned so much from following her. Just the other day she posted to following from a Facebook fan:
"Hug your babies a little closer tonight... and after they're asleep, read up and make sure they're as well protected as this baby was. Start by watching this video to make sure you're buckling your child properly -http://youtu.be/84CzHRsFoo8
"'My husband, 7 month old daughter, and I were involved in a really bad accident last night... one in which the paramedics said we shouldn't have survived. My husband and I have a little soreness but my daughter was completely unscathed. I attribute a large part of that to learning from you the proper installation of her car seat and buckling her in, your impressing upon me the need to be obsessive about the installation and buckling, and your post on keeping children safe in car seats in the winter. What you do saves lives so please don't stop. After reading your article on winter car seat safety, I ditched my expensive car seat muff (that hurt smile emoticon and she had on a very thin fleece onesie instead of a puffy coat or all-in-one.'"
Constant vigilance about car seat safety could be the difference between life and death for your little one in the event of an accident. You're precious cargo deserves to be protected.
*** Although this post was not sponsored it does contain affiliate links. I make a small profit when you buy products from these links at no additional cost to you***
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