Child safety seats are meant to protect a child in the event an accident occurs. In a crash, the child safety seat is designed to absorb the energy of the crash. If the seat is improperly installed or your child isn’t buckled in the right way, the seat can’t do its job. Here is some important information on proper safety seat installation.
- Safercar.gov provides a lot of great information on Safety Seats and proper safety seat installation. This particular post – The Right Fit-Car Seat Installation – discusses how to install a car seat along with how to properly buckle your child into the seat.
- Coats and car seats – Kelly Klasek, lead instructor of community education at St. Louis Children’s Hospital, says it is never okay to secure a child wearing a coat into a car seat. Read why here…Coats and Car Seats: A Lethal Combination?
- Car Safety Seats Expire – Yes, that’s right. Car safety seats are made of plastics that deteriorate in time from exposure to sun and heat. Also, if a car seat has been in an accident, its protective qualities may be further compromised. Check your local municipality to see if they have any child safety seat recycling programs in place.
At Shade Tree Garage, our mission is to give you peace of mind about the safety and reliability of your car. We want your littlest passengers to be safe, too. That’s why hold free Safety Seat Check-Up events twice each month (one Saturday and one Tuesday evening) to teach parents about proper safety seat installation.
photo credit: Child Car Seat Safety PSA April 18, 2012 1 via photopin (license)