Car Seat Safety Tips from an Expert (and a Couple From Us)

Getting car seats installed correctly is somehow both simple and a challenge. It’s a challenge because it really does take a bit of brute strength and know-how to get them installed right. Simple, because once you know how to do it correctly, you’re good to go for future installations. Before we brought my oldest child home from the hospital, we took the car by a car seat inspection station to make sure we’d installed the seat correctly. Then, nurses at the hospital checked our work to make sure we installed the baby correctly. If you’re a soon-to-be parent or will be buckling any kiddos into your car, check out these car seat safety tips from Allana Pinkerton, Global Safety Advocate for Diono. Pinkerton is a Certified Child Passenger Safety Technician and has worked to instruct and present to others about the danger of not properly installing and utilizing car seats and seat buckles.

5 Car Seat Safety Tips from an Expert

Read the manual. It sounds simple, but most of us do not read manuals for the products we buy. While it might be easy to set up your new coffee maker or flat screen TV, installing a car seat is serious business and the manual is written according to how the car seat is crash tested. Read the warnings and the table of contents first, and then refer to the pages for your specific installation. Some situations might require a phone call to the manufacturer. Do not hesitate to call them if you need assistance. They are happy to help!

Slide the belt in the right place. Car seats have belt paths for either the seat belt or the lower anchor straps to slide through. If the seat is a convertible, it will have two belt paths: one for rear-facing and one for forward-facing. It’s very important to use the appropriate belt path.

Install the seat tight. Once you have pulled the seat belt tight and locked it or pulled the lower anchor strap tight, the car seat should move less than one inch side-to-side or front-to-back when you tug at the belt path. If there is too much movement, start the installation process over or change to another seating position.

Harness your child properly. Your child’s harness works just like a race car driver’s harness. It holds them in the car seat and spreads the crash forces over the strongest parts of the body. This helps decrease the risk of injury or death. The harness should fit snug and comfortable. Try the pinch test up near the collar bone. If you can pinch the harness webbing between your thumb and index finger, give another tug on the adjuster strap until you can’t pinch any webbing. While there might be room near the belly area, a snug fit up at the collar bone is all you need.

Check your work. Most car seats are unknowingly installed incorrectly. You might look for a professional to teach your child how to play the piano, tutor them in math, or teach them how to swim. Why not look for a professional that could possibly help save their life? There are dedicated Child Passenger Safety Technicians willing to help.

…and Two From Us

When in doubt, it’s probably wrong. If it doesn’t feel right, it’s probably not. If the seat is loose or wobbly or not level or just feels off, trust your gut and try again.

Make sure both parents know how to install the seats. I say this as one who until pretty recently let my husband be the default car seat installer in the family. It’s nice having the know-how to properly install seats in case they ever need rearranging. I got a proper test recently when I had to move all three of our seats around. It was a workout, too!

Do you and your partner both know how to install the car seat? —Erin