Carseat Safety
I’m not an expert on carseat safety by any stretch of the imagination, but this is one area where my husband and I simply do not compromise. Last year, our small group held a “Safety Day” at a local park, and one thing we shared information about was carseat safety.
Improperly using a carseat, unfortunately, can negate the benefits of using one. No, I’m not advocating not using them at all! But I did want to share some basic safety information with you from the flyers we handed out during Safety Day.
Important factors when choosing a car seat:
*The most expensive car seat is not necessarily the safest.
*It is more important that the car seat properly fit your car AND your child.
*If you’re unsure about the fit of your car seat, the local police department or fire department can check it for you!
Always remember:
*Never place a rear-facing car seat in a seat with a front airbag.
*Harness fit is very important. The retainer clips should be at armpit level on your child and snug, with no slack. Your child should not be able to lean forward or from side to side, and you should only be able to fit two fingers between the harness clip and your child’s chest. Please note: Hillary shared that because different people obviously have different size fingers, the current recommendations for harness fit are that you should not be able to pinch slack at your child’s shoulder.
*Babies should ride rear facing until they are 20 pounds and one year old. It is safest to keep them rear facing to the upper limits of the car seat, which is as much as 65 pounds in some car seats.
*Even if your child is old enough for a booster, five-point harnesses are much safer as long as they still fit.
*When a car seat is properly installed, there should not be any significant movement along the belt path.
Other resources:
*Your local police department or fire station
I totally agree that we should never compromise our child’s safety. When I went to get our careseats checked in Dec. the man told me that they no longer do the two finger rule because everyone has a different size finger. He said that now they say you should not be able to pinch any slack on the strap closest to the shoulder. Thought you might want to know that…he actually told me that I was making poor Ty’s seat belt too tight! Ughhh.
Look at that sweet sleepy girl. You’ve been tagged! :PBR/BR/Tara
Thanks, Hillary – that is good information!BR/BR/I actually realized when we got our Fisher Price carseat that’s pictured above (made by Britax) that we were making the girls’ too tight as well. Those have a feature where you pull the strap as tight as you can, and then it adds back the slightest amount of slack when you let go.