Car seat safety and safely transporting children in the winter!!!

[Nature'sKids!]

Car seat safety
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5AwtaQnNO8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51vqevCSUgY (I made a poncho like this out of a cheap fleece blanket. Just one option of many, a simple blanket works too obviously :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8gU9zzCGA8 (this one is more for those looking after babies or who have babies themselves, who "could" by law be sitting forward facing (so 9kg / 9 months)

http://www.carseat.org/Boosters/634_5step_demo.pdf

http://www.car-safety.org/basics.html ok so it's american but 90% still applies here too.

Now that the weather is getting colder we will be facing icy roads again, making it more dangerous to drive. Even if YOU have winter tyres and drive slowly there's always idiots onthe road who could cause accidents. Stay safe and protect those who need protecting most PROPERLY!

[AliceK]

Thanks. Interesting reading :thumbsup:
Very interesting about the winter coat giving the child too much slack when strapped in although I'm not so keen on doing a coat up over the buckles. I just think in an emergency you could waste precious time undoing a coat in order to get the child out. A poncho or blanket would be a good idea though :thumbsup:

xxxx

[rickysmiths]

Thank you all very interesting. However the info on over 10s is for the American market and we have a clear law here that any child under 135cm tall has to go in a booster so the check list is not really applicable to this countries regulations.

I also don't think the exercise in the first video is very helpful. But then I never put my children in the car in anything other than a fleece. I have fleece blankets in the boot to use for them if it is very very cold or we get stuck somewhere.

This weekend I will be putting my winter pack in the car which is in addition to what I always carry in case of a delay or emergency.

1 spade
a fleece blanket for each passenger in the car, there is always a space blanket each in the boot.
extra bottles of water
a couple of cartons of long life milk (baby formular if I had babies who used it)
a packet of biscuits, cereal bars, dried fruit, a couple of jars of baby food if I have one of that age
coffee and tea bags
plastic cups and a platex bottle with a packet of liners
travel potty and liners
paper towel
wet wipes
2 large flasks of hot water whenever we go further than our local town

plus my usual changing bag with nappies etc.

[Nature'sKids!]

Well I did say it was from America lol

[Mouse]

I still don't get what the problem is with a child wearing a coat in a carseat. You adjust the straps to fit with the clothes they are wearing at the time. If you tighten the straps over a coat, that's fine.

If you then take the child out, take their coat off and put them back in, you would re-tighten the straps. Of course there's going to be slack if you don't - the child had a coat on before & now they haven't :rolleyes:

[snufflepuff]

I still don't get what the problem is with a child wearing a coat in a carseat. You adjust the straps to fit with the clothes they are wearing at the time. If you tighten the straps over a coat, that's fine.

If you then take the child out, take their coat off and put them back in, you would re-tighten the straps. Of course there's going to be slack if you don't - the child had a coat on before & now they haven't

I think the reason is that in an accident the force could cause the padding in the coat to compress, leaving a gap between the child and the seat belt, which could leave space for the child to slip out/ could cause the child to be jolted more than if they were strapped in tightly. I think!

[rickysmiths]

I think the reason is that in an accident the force could cause the padding in the coat to compress, leaving a gap between the child and the seat belt, which could leave space for the child to slip out/ could cause the child to be jolted more than if they were strapped in tightly. I think!

That's right, they recommend you don't put a child in a car seat in a big thick winter coat because it is difficult to tighten the straps so they are safe and uncomfortable for the child. I ask my parents to give me fleece jackets and then use blankets if its very cold but the heating in the car is very efficient.

[Nature'sKids!]

Yes, e forces in a crash are so huge they warp and twist the car seat (just watch crazy test videos!) so a padded jacket would simply compress down to nothing (just like when you use vaccim pack bags for storing clothing!) and this is equal to a child being in a car seat with straps that aren't tight enough to contain the child, risking being projected out of the seat.
I have this awful pic of ds1 in a big jacket in his car seat - and I thought he was safe, but looking at it now I cringe and can't help but think how the he'll did I not realise this wasn't safe? Due to the bulkiness if the jacket the straps
aren't even on his shoulders :eek: :o