Cold weather is upon us, and that means we are bundling up our kids as we leave the house. We all want to keep our kids warm and safe from the cold, but it is important to keep in mind that wearing a coat while buckled into a car seat can be a hazardous combination.
No matter how tight you try to make car seat straps, it is impossible to get a correct and safe fit with bulky coats or snowsuits. Winter coats can cause several inches of slack in your child’s straps! In the event of an accident, bulky, puffy clothing and coats compress under force, which can result in too much space between the harness straps and your child. This could cause your child to slip through the straps, and risk being ejected from their car seat during an accident.
The Car Seat Lady demonstrates HERE how compression causes loose straps.
The following tips will help keep your child both safe and warm while in their car seats during the wintertime:
- Dress your child in multiple thin layers. Long-sleeved onesies or shirts and leggings as a first layer, then add pants and a thermal knit shirt. Wearing a thin fleece jacket or snug hoodie can replace a thick coat safely.
- Use a coat after your child is buckled. Your child can wear their coat backward after being secured in their seat, overtop the buckled harness. Simply slip the coat sleeves over their arms, and the bodice of the coat acts as a blanket. Easy peasy!
- Hats, gloves, and mittens. They’ll keep kids warm and do not interfere with straps and buckles. Keep an extra set in the car in the event you encounter a lost mitten.
- Car seat covers that only go over the top of an infant car seat. There are many popular products on the market that are intended to be placed under your child in their car seat. These are never safe and have not passed crash testing. Nothing that is an aftermarket car seat accessory should go under your child in their car seat.
- Use a blanket. The American Academy of Pediatrics states that as a rule of thumb, "infants need one additional layer of clothing as adults". Adding a blanket tucked around their legs, once buckled, will help keep them warm.
- Get familiar with your car seat’s instruction manual. Make sure you know how to adjust and tighten your seat’s straps and review the manufacturer’s statements on winter clothing and the use of aftermarket products.
- Find a CPST to check your installation. Car seats can be tricky to install correctly. A Certified Child Passenger Safety Technician can check your seat’s installation, help correct any issues with strap placement, and answer specific questions you may have.
Additionally, as a reminder for the safety of your family, if you warm your car up in cooler weather never do so while the vehicle is the garage – even if the garage door is open. This could expose you and your family to carbon monoxide poisoning.
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