Car Seats and Winter Coats Don’t Mix!
Winter in
Minnesota is brutal and, of course, you want to keep your little one warm, but
there are safe (and unsafe) ways for your baby to travel in the winter.
 |
| Ready to venture out in the first snow of the season! |
Thick winter
coats and snowsuits that are used with a car seat can compromise your baby’s
safety. Car seat straps should fit snuggly and there should be minimal layers
between your baby and the harness. Thick layers (think puffy coats and
snowsuits) will compress during a crash, leaving slack in the harness, which
could allow your baby to be ejected from the car seat. This is sometimes
referred to as “coat compression.” Have
you ever seen the "Space Bag" demonstrations?
See
how those puffy sweaters can be flattened? Well, that is what happens with a
puffy coat worn in a car seat during a crash. The straps that could hold your
child and their coat tightly before, cannot withstand the G-force of a crash
and will not hold your child tightly during. It’s just not possible to pull the
straps tight enough while your child is wearing a heavy coat.
Check all winter coats for car seat safety:
It's easy to check and see whether a baby's winter coat
or infant snowsuit is too thick to be safe in a car seat. This test will show
you how thick the coat is and how much the coat will compress during a crash.
1.
Take the car seat into the house.
2.
Put the winter coat or snowsuit on
the child.
3.
Put the child in the car seat and
buckle the harnesses as you normally would before car travel. Adjust the straps
to the appropriate fit for your child.
4.
Take the child out of the car seat
without loosening the straps at all.
5.
Take the coat off your child.
6.
Put the child back in the car seat
and buckle the harnesses again, but do not tighten the straps.
If you can fit more than two fingers under the harness
at the child's shoulder bone, the coat is too thick and is not safe for use
with the car seat.
 |
| This is NOT a safe way for a baby to travel. The loose straps over the heavy coat would not keep him safe during an accident. |
What
to do if your child’s winter coat is not safe to use in a car seat:
Of course kids (and especially babies) still need to be
kept warm in the winter. Here are a few ways you might want to try keeping your
kids warm AND safe:
- Have your child wear their warm coat while outside, but then take the coat off once the child is in the car. After buckling the child into his/her car seat, place the coat on the child backwards to help keep them warm while in the car.
- Keep a stash of blankets in the car that the child can use to keep warm after removing their coat.
- Kids can continue to wear hats and mittens while in their car seats. Anything that doesn’t come between the child and the harness is still safe.
- Babies should be dressed warmly (think undershirt, sweater, sweatpants…what they might wear if it was 50-60 degrees outside) and then placed in the car seat. You can cover them directly with a light blanket and then cover the entire car seat with a heavier blanket or car seat canopy. Or, there are car seat covers available that fit snugly over the car seat with a peek-a-boo hole for baby’s face (but make sure it doesn’t go underneath your baby, between his or her bottom and the car seat, as that could also compress in a crash and create slack in the harness).
- When
possible, try to warm up the car before bringing your baby outside to help ease
the transition out of their coat and into the car seat.
This is a much SAFER way for a baby to travel!
Plus, he appreciates not being crammed into his buckle with a big, puffy coat on.
It may take longer to get little
ones loaded and unloaded from the car in the winter, but the few extra minutes
is definitely worth it to keep them safe!
Here are some great articles for more
information:
Winter Coats and Car Seats Don’t Mix
Video demonstration
posted on YouTube by Christie Haskell
Winter Coats and Car Seats - Check for Safety!
Posted on About.com By Heather Corley
The Mom: Informed…Coats and Car Seats Don’t Mix
