Make sure the seat is at the correct angle so your child's head does not flop forward. Check the instructions to find out the correct angle for your seat and how to adjust the angle if needed. All rear-facing seats have built-in recline indicators. Check the car safety seat instructions and vehicle owner's manual about whether the car safety seat may contact the back of the vehicle seat in front of it.
Still having trouble? Check with a certified CPST in your area who can help. Common questions What if my child's feet touch the back of the vehicle seat? This is a very common concern of parents, but it should cause them no worry.
Children are very flexible and can always easily find a comfortable position in a rear-facing seat. Injuries to the legs are very rare for children facing the rear.
What do I do if my child slouches down or to the side in the car seat? You can try placing a tightly rolled receiving blanket on both sides of your child. Many manufacturers allow the use of a tightly rolled small diaper or cloth between the crotch strap and your child, if necessary, to prevent slouching. Do not place padding under or behind your child or use any sort of car safety seat insert unless it came with the seat or was made by the manufacturer for use with that specific seat. Why should I dress my child in thinner layers of clothing before strapping him or her into a car safety seat?
Bulky clothing, including winter coats and snowsuits, can compress in a crash and leave the straps too loose to restrain your child, leading to increased risk of injury.
Ideally, dress your baby in thinner layers and wrap a coat or blanket around your baby over the buckled harness straps if needed. Do preemies need a special car seat? These include all-in-one seats. Combination seats with harness: Seats can be used forward facing with a harness for children who weigh up to 40 to 65 pounds depending on the model or without the harness as a booster up to — pounds, depending on the model.
Integrated seats: Some vehicles come with built-in forward-facing seats. Weight and height limits vary. Do not use a built-in seat until your child has reached the highest weight or height allowed for your rear-facing convertible car safety seat. Travel vests: Vests can be worn by children 22 to pounds and can be an option to traditional forward- facing seats.
They are useful for when a vehicle has lap-only seat belts in the rear, for children with certain special needs, or for children whose weight has exceeded that allowed by car safety seats. These vests usually require use of a top tether.
Installation tips for forward-facing seats Always read the vehicle owner's manual and the car safety seat manual before installing the seat. To switch a convertible or all-in-one seat from rear-facing to forward-facing: Move the harness shoulder straps to the slots or position that is at or just above your child's shoulders. Check the instructions that came with the seat to be sure you are positioning the shoulder straps correctly.
You may have to adjust the recline angle of the seat so that it sits more upright in your vehicle. Check the instructions to be sure. If using a seat belt, make sure it runs through the forward-facing belt path be sure to follow car safety seat instructions and that the seat belt is locked and tightened.
Many car safety seats have an integrated lock-off to keep the seat belt locked. If using the lower anchors, make sure that the weight of your child plus the weight of the seat does not exceed 65 pounds. Most seats now state in the manual and on the stickers on the side the maximum child weight to use the anchors. If the child weighs too much, caregivers must use the seat belt to install. Always use the tether when you can. A tether is a strap that is attached to the top part of a car safety seat and holds the seat tightly by connecting to an anchor point in your vehicle often on the seat back or rear shelf; see your vehicle owner's manual to find where tether anchors are in your vehicle.
Tethers give important extra protection by keeping the car safety seat and your child's head from moving too far forward in a crash or sudden stop. All new cars, minivans, and light trucks are required to have tether anchors as of September Forward-facing seats come with tether straps.
A tether should always be used as long as your child has not reached the top weight limit for the tether anchor. If absolutely necessary, a child in a forward-facing seat with a harness may be the best choice to ride in front.
Just be sure the vehicle seat is moved as far back away from the dashboard and airbag as possible. As a general guideline, a child has outgrown a forward-facing seat when any of the following situations is true: He reaches the top weight or height allowed for his seat with a harness. These limits are listed on the seat and in the instruction manual. His shoulders are above the top harness slots. Types of booster seats High-back and backless are 2 standard types of booster seats.
Watch the video: How to Use a Booster Seat If your booster seat has lower anchors or tether attachments, check its manual for installation instructions. What is the difference between high-back boosters and backless boosters? High-back boosters should be used in vehicles without headrests or with low seat backs. Many seats that look like high-back boosters are actually combination seats. They come with harnesses that can be used for smaller children and, later, removed for older children.
Backless boosters are usually less expensive and are easier to move from one vehicle to another. Backless boosters can be used safely in vehicles with headrests and high seat backs.
The lap belt is low and snug across the upper thighs, not the belly. Your child is tall enough to sit against the vehicle seat back with her knees bent over the edge of the seat without slouching and can comfortably stay in this position throughout the trip. This leaves the upper body unprotected and adds extra slack to the seat belt system, putting your child at risk of severe injury in a crash or with sudden braking. All passengers must have their own car safety seats or seat belts.
Common question I've seen products that say they can help make the seat belt fit better. Should we get one of these? No, these products are unapproved and should not be used. They may actually interfere with proper seat belt fit by causing the lap belt to ride too high on the stomach or making the shoulder belt too loose. They can even damage the seat belt. This rule applies to car safety seats too; do not use extra products unless they came with the seat or are specifically approved by the seat manufacturer.
These products are not covered by any federal safety standards, and the AAP does not recommend they be used. As long as children are riding in the correct restraint for their size, they should not need to use additional devices. A higher price does not mean the seat is safer or easier to use. Look on the label for the date the seat was made.
Check with the manufacturer to find out how long it recommends using the seat. Has any visible cracks on it. Does not have a label with the date of manufacture and model number. Without these, you cannot check to see if the seat has been recalled. Does not come with instructions. You need them to know how to use the seat. Instructions can be found on manufacturer websites or by contacting the manufacturer. Is missing parts. Used car safety seats often come without important parts.
Check with the manufacturer to make sure you can get the right parts. Was recalled. Do not use seats that have been in a moderate or severe crash. Seats that were in a minor crash may still be safe to use, but some car safety seat manufacturers recommend replacing the seat after any crash, even a minor one.
The NHTSA considers a crash minor if all the following situations are true: The vehicle could be driven away from the crash. The vehicle door closest to the car safety seat was not damaged. No one in the vehicle was injured. The airbags did not go off. These cookies do not store any personal information. Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies.
It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. Last Updated On: February 19, Harnessed car seat. Booster seat. Booster training: not always easy! Evenflo EveryFit 6 years old. Graco TrioGrow booster mode. Evenflo EveryFit 9 years old. Proper booster fit in a Graco Affix. Nuna Pipa Review ». Privacy Policy Contact Us. This website uses cookies to improve your experience.
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These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. See here for a very in-depth discussion of exactly how and why boosters work so well for children. For kids who like to sleep in the car, choose a high-back booster that has a recline and a well designed head rest. These design aspects can help the child sleep better and longer while keeping their body better positioned in the seat belt during sleep.
One high back booster we find that is especially good for sleeping is the Maxi Cosi RodiFix. If the seat back is not tall enough, then the child needs a high back booster.
Do you see the error here? Studies show that nearly half of all boosters are misused in the same way, where the lap belt is accidentally placed over one or both of the arm rests. Some boosters are cleverly designed to eliminate this type of misuse! We love the Maxi Cosi RodiFix for a variety of reasons, but one biggie is that Maxi Cosi designed this booster so that it has no arm rests!
Slouching also makes the seat belt very loose, which allows the whole body to move more than it should in a crash — but in particular the head moves a lot farther forward and is much more likely to hit the back of the front seat — which causes both brain and neck injuries. Kids need a booster seat until the seat belt fits properly on their body without the help of a booster the lap belt is on their lap and the shoulder belt is between the neck and shoulder AND their body fits properly on the vehicle seat they can sit back with their knees bent without having to slouch.
Studies show that half of all 10 year olds need a booster seat to ride safely — and by 12, almost every child is ready to ride safely without a booster.
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