Well, winter is upon us (in many places, anyways!). And with that colder weather comes the need to bundle up and keep the family warm. But what about when you’re in the car? Are you familiar with the “Dos and Don’ts” of winter car seat safety?
Here are some tips for Winter Car Seat Safety:
Don’t:
Heavy winter coats. Anything puffy or oversized will create slack in your child’s car seat harness. In the event of a wreck or sudden stop, all that fluff will compress and your child will not be properly restrained.
Snow suits: Same idea as heavy winter coats but surrounding your entire child! (below illustrates a child a snowsuit with straps properly tightened to pass the “pinch test” and after the snow suit is removed without adjusting the straps in between)
Bundle Mes/Foot Muffs. You know those great liners that go under the baby and then wrap over them to keep them comfy cozy? Not so great for the car seat (though they are wonderful for the buggy/stroller!). All car seat manufactures strictly prohibit the use of after-market products and anything that goes between your child and their car seat can affect the way their seat protects them in a collision so unless it came with your car seat, don’t use it! (The “shower cap” style covers for infant carrier that go over the perimeter of the seat and not underneath the child or straps are safe.)
Do:
Stick with lightweight coats or sweaters. To determine if your child’s coat is too heavy for car seat use, try this trick: buckle your child into their car seat with normal clothes on. Remove your child without loosening the straps. Put the coat on and try buckling the child up again. If you can buckle him/her in without trouble, the coat is fine. If the straps are too tight, the coat is too heavy and dangerous.
Wear layers. When it’s horribly cold and the car isn’t warmed up, we put an extra sweater or fleece on the kids to help with the initial chill (of course, hats and gloves are always permitted as well!)
Blankets. Once your child is strapped safely into his/her car seat, you can out anything you want over the harness and tuck it in beside your child.
Coats over the top. Similar to blankets, you can put your child’s coat on backwards once they are buckled in. while traveling around Germany with a tiny little Sugarplum, i found that for little tinies an upside down coat (feet in the hood, sides and sleeves tucked in the sides) works beautifully.
Ponchos. These are great if your child is out of the infant seat and needs to get from the house to the car in the freezing cold. Your child simply wears the poncho to the car then once buckled up, the poncho lays over the top of the seat keeping little one warm.
And don’t be mistaken into thinking once a child is out of a car seat puffy coats are okay. Even older children in boosters and adults need the vehicle seatbelt to fit snuggly against the body. The compression factor of a puffy coat applies to passengers of all ages!
For more on keeping your little ones safe in the car, see all of Beyond Mommying’s Car Seat Safety posts.
Car seat safe items include:
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[…] Remember car seat safety. Before you go bundling up your baby, think about car seat safety. Avoid bulky coat, snowsuits, or car seat add ons like (like foot muffs). Instead, carry blankets and layer your baby’s clothing. For a great post about winter car seat safety, check out this post from Beyond Mommying. […]
Good reminder
This is great advice
I never thought about the things you had to consider in winter when using a car seat. Thanks for the info.
Thank you so much for sharing this!! This is such important information and needs to be available to all!! It makes me so sad how many people don’t know correct car seat information!! Thanks for getting it out there :)
Thanks, Amber! It’s definitely important to spread this important information around as winter grows closer.
So many parents do not know this. I wish there was more info out there and more products designed to use safely with the car seat. Wisconsin winters are brutal and many people do not abide by these safety measures.
I agree, Renee. It breaks my heart every time I see a child not properly restrained in the car, especially in bad weather when things can go wrong very quickly!
This is a great article and I think all moms with little ones in car seats should really read this.
Thanks, Heather. I agree this information is so important for all new parents and as a reminder for all parents as we come into fall and winter.
I found you in the orthodox sunflower link up today, and I’m glad I did! Especially with winter coming up, it is SOOOO important to remember to keep kiddies bundled SAFELY! So many new mommies this year, so many first winters! It’ll be a first winter for my second child…. so excited! And so greatful to be reminded!
Thanks for stopping by, Kaitlyn! This is definitely information that needs to make it to new parents because it’s so easy to get caught up on whether your child is warm enough getting to the car that people often don’t think about safety once in the car.