How To Avoid The Most Common Car Seat Mistakes
Children need a car seat for a long time. Once a child outgrows their car seat they need a booster seat, typically around 4-years-old or 40 pounds. The majority of kids stop using their booster seat too early. Your child should remain in a booster seat until they are large enough to comfortably use an adult seat belt.
You can never be too safe when it comes to placing your child in a fast moving automobile, which is why booster seats are available for children weighing as much as 65 to 80 pounds. Automobile seat belts are designed to fit children that are at least 4’9 and 80 pounds.
As your child grows they will need a variety of different car seats and booster seats, which must be properly fit to your child and your car in order to do its job. Is your car seat doing its job keeping your sweet little one as safe as possible?
How Many Kids Die Each Year In Automobile Accidents?
Car seat safety should never go ignored, as children die every day in automobile accidents, and often because their car seat or booster seat is not properly secured. Driving around feels routine but in reality it is not the safest activity and a number of unexpected things can go wrong.
Driving is safer in some areas than others, but all roads and highways are far from fail-proof. The sad truth is that every day 4-5 children lose their life in an automobile accident. In fact, car crashes are a leading cause of death for children living in the USA.
A large factor in the number of accidents that involve children has to do with an improperly fitted car seat. According to Alisa Baer, M.D., a pediatrician and nationally certified child passenger safety instructor, “Across the country we find a greater than 95% misuse of car seats.”
You don’t have to make the same mistakes as other parents. You can reduce your child’s risk by doing your research and making sure your child’s car seat fits them, and is properly secured in your vehicle.
Car Seat Vs. Booster Seat: Which Does Your Child Need?
Children over 40 pounds require a booster seat, and children under 40 pounds require a car seat. A car seat is different than a booster seat. A car seat is used for smaller children, and a booster seat is used to secure children who have outgrown their car seat but still need extra support. The booster seat simply lifts your child up about 6-inches or so in order to make the seat belt fit properly.
Always be aware of the weight restrictions listed on your current car seat or booster seat. When your child is near the maximum weight capacity it’s time to invest in a new seat.
How To Find The Best Car Seat For Your Child
A car seat might look simple to use but it’s actually a high-tech result of advanced engineering, designed specifically to keep little kids safe in the case of impact. There are tons of car seats on the market, so how do you pick the best one for your child?
There are no traceable links between the cost of a car seat and its overall effectiveness. So while buying a high-end designer car seat might be tempting, it’s not technically necessary.
It is more important to get a seat you can afford so that you are able to get a new one as soon as your child outgrows it. When parents spend too much on the first or second car seat they often hang onto it past what is safe. Trying to stretch out the use of a car seat is never a good idea.
Here are 3 steps to help you find the best car seat for your child:
- First, do some research and uncover the options available according to your child’s age, height and weight, as well as your price range. Once you find a few suitable options read customer reviews and any associated safety reports.
- Secondly, be aware when your child will outgrow their current car seat so that you can be proactive about getting a new one when the time comes.
- Avoid purchasing a used car seat because there is no way to judge if that seat has been in a previous accident and is still good. Missing or expired parts and recalls can plague a used car seat without your knowledge, compromising your child’s safety from the get-go.
Common Car Seat Installation Mistakes
Your child is strapped up in a great, highly rated car seat but they still might not be as safe as you assume. Some of the most common car seat problems unknowingly arise during the installation process. Read on so that you don’t make these 7 common car seat mistakes with your precious cargo!
1. Car Seat is Too Loose
When you wiggle the car seat it should not wobble in any direction more than 1 inch, if it does it is not installed tightly enough.
2. Child is Turned To Face Forward Too Soon
Your child should face the rear of the car in their car seat until they are at least 1-year-old and weigh 20 pounds, this is the bare minimum and most safety warnings advise waiting even longer than this.
3. Car Seat Is Not Angled Correctly
Your baby should sit at just the right angle if their car seat is properly positioned. The safest angle is at or slightly below 45 degrees from vertical. If your child is positioned at a greater incline than this, they are at risk for being thrown out between the harness straps in the case of an accident.
4. Incorrect Harness Placement
The actual harness straps should be tight enough on your child. When secured around your child there shouldn’t be enough slack for you to pinch the harness between your thumb and forefinger. The straps should only be loose enough to slide one finger beneath. Also, the harness retainer clip should hit at your child’s armpit.
5. Safety Belt Is Not Locked
You may need to resort to your vehicle owner’s manual in order to find out how to keep your safety belts locked. Different automobiles have different instructions for locking seat belts with a child-safety restraint. All cars made after 1997 must include safety belt locks for car seats.
6. Ditching The Tether
The tether, otherwise referred to as that long and often annoying strap that loves getting caught in the car door and under your feet, is an essential component to any front-facing car seat. The tether must be secured to the anchors located behind the headrests.
While only 42% of parents admit using the tether, it can be the difference between life and death as it keeps your child’s head from leaving the confines of the car seat during an accident. In fact, the tether confines your child’s movement during an accident by 4-8 inches, which can make the difference between a head or spinal injury.
Even if your car seat is not properly installed, the tether can help reduce the chance for serious injury. (Learn more about this topic here)
7. Not Using Enough Weight When Seat Is Installed
When installing a car seat make sure and carefully follow the guidelines provided by the user manual, as well as your automobile manual. A common mistake is installing a car seat without applying the recommended weight during installation. Having someone help you install the car seat can help avoid this mistake. (Learn more)
How Do You Know For Sure If Your Car Seat Is Properly Installed?
It might seem easy, but in reality installing a car seat is tricky and there is a lot of room for error. You can follow all of the rules in the book but if it’s your first time installing a car seat chances are a few mistakes will slip in.
Two people can get the job done much better than one, but the only way to know for sure that you’ve done a great job is to have a professional look over your newly installed car seat before putting it to use.
We didn’t mention it above, but the biggest mistake of all parents make after installing a car seat is avoiding professional help. According to Dr. Baer, “There is no reason that any parent should be confident enough in their car seat installation to take a risk on their child’s life.”
The best thing you can do to guarantee your car seat is properly installed is to locate a certified technician in your area and have them look it over. Certain police and fire stations are listed as checkpoints parents can stop by to in order to have their car seat inspected for safety. You can find out which local organizations serve as a checkpoint in your area by visiting seatcheck.org.
When Is Your Child Old Enough To Ditch The Booster Seat?
When your child is too big for their car seat they move on to the booster seat, but at what point is your child big enough to stop using all forms of safety seats?
Most parents ditch the booster seat too soon. The booster seat should be used until a child is large enough to properly and comfortably fit in a seat belt. In reality, some kids are not tall enough for a regular seat belt until they are 10 to 12 years old, although you rarely see children of this age still relying on a booster seat.
Booster seats are often deemed babyish and kids want to give them up as soon as their friends do. Plus, it’s easier for parents to live life without the booster seat, for instance more kids can fit in the car at once. Still, in order to keep your child as safe as possible you should stick to the booster seat until your child is truly large enough to safely use a seat belt without a booster.
5 Step Test To Help Determine If Your Child Has Outgrown Their Booster Seat:
- Your child can sit with a straight back against the vehicle seat.
- While sitting upright in the seat they can comfortably bend their legs over the edge of the seat
- The lap belt should hit low on the hips and touch the thighs
- The shoulder belt sits flat across the center of your child’s shoulder and chest area.
- Your child can retain this positioning without sliding down or slouching in their seat.
To help decide if your child has outgrown their booster seat you can use this detailed test created by carseat.org @ http://www.carseat.org/Boosters/634_5step_demo.pdf