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Baby Car Seat Safety

Safety Tips for Your Baby Car Seat

Baby car seat safety is important to every parent or caregiver who travels with a baby in a vehicle. Whether driving down the block, or across the country, your baby’s car seat is what protects them in case of an accident. It also keeps them safe and secure during bumpy or rough rides. Unfortunately, sometimes simple mistakes using a baby car seat can result in injury or death.

Baby car seat safety begins with choosing the right seat for your child's weight. Most infant seats are made for babies up to twenty-two pounds, or twenty-six inches long. Convertible, or infant-toddler seats, can be used forward facing or rear facing, and are for children up to forty pounds.

Another important part of baby car seat safety is proper installation. All infant car seats should be installed in the center of the vehicles rear seat. They should also face the rear of the car until the child's first birthday. They must be installed at the proper angle. Many baby car seats have a built-in leveling device to assist you in installing it at the correct safe angle. This is important both the proper operation of the infant car seat and the proper support of the your baby. After that, the seat can face forward, and be positioned in another place in the back seat. However, the best place in the car for baby car seat safety is still the middle seat. Children should never ride in the front seat, with or without a car seat.

New guidelines in baby car seat safety say that seats with a five-point harness offer more protection than any other type of harness. Many harnesses also offer extensive padding for more comfort and protection. Be sure to adjust the cross strap so that it is level with your baby's arm pits, or across the middle of their chest. Too high and it can rub against their chin or thoat. Too low and there's a possibility of them sliding right out of the harness during a sudden stop.

Some brands vary on the way they are installed, so always follow the instructions of the manufacturer of your car seat for the best baby car seat safety.

Want to Know More?

	Don't know about LATCH? To learn about it, click here for LATCH information.
	Wondering about your state's child safety seat laws? Click here for child safety seat law information.

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