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Many new parents believe that once they’ve installed their infant car seats in their car, they are good to go. What they may not realize is that between fifty and eighty percent of child car seats are actually incorrectly installed. This may compromise the safety features of the seat in the event of a crash.
Fortunately, there is a way to ensure that your child’s car seat is installed 100% correctly. Safe Kids Buckle Up is a program sponsored by Safe Kids USA. Through this program, local police stations offer car seat safety checks to help prevent injuries should an accident occur. They also provide great peace of mind for parents.
Remember, infants should be placed in a rear-facing car seat until they are at least 20 pounds and one year old. They can actually stay in some of them (like convertible models) even longer; check the instructions for your particular model. Make sure the car seat is always in the BACK seat, never the front. The straps should be snug enough that you can’t fit more than two fingers between the straps and your baby, and the clip should be at the same level as your baby’s armpits.
To find a car seat check near you, click here.
If you have a comment, suggestion, or news about child safety issues, please feel free to email me at childsafetyexaminer@comcast.net.
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