Car seat safety

I took these photos to demonstrate car seat safety. Even if you look at the photos, please go to a fire station and have your car seat and baby inspected for proper positioning and safety. Proper car seat use saves lives. It really, really does and as parents we'd like to think we know how to install a measly seat. But these seats hold our babies as we drive every day. We all know that driving is one of the most dangerous and life-threatening things we do. 99% of us have to drive so why not make sure that your baby is safe?

Remember you MUST keep your child rear-facing until they are one year AND 20 lbs -- NOT one year or 20 lbs. Kids who rear face until the age of two have a two fold reduction risk for fatality compared to kids who forward face at a year. *Please excuse the blanket rolled up under the baby; it is only there to assist me in getting a more real height to this baby doll, which is really really small.


Captions for the photos are below the image.

INCORRECT for two reasons. One is that the shoulder straps are not routed into the back of the car seat behind the baby's shoulders. The routing is to high. The next problem is that the chest clip is too low on the baby.

INCORRECT. Although the chest clip is at the proper height near the baby's armpits, the harness routing is still too high. In a crash, even with a proper chest clip height but with a harness routing too high, the baby can be ejected from the seat. See next photo for example.

Even with the correct chest clip height, the baby can be ejected since the harness strap is too high. Proper chest clip and proper harness routing height are essential for safety!

INCORRECT. Although the harness is now routed properly behind the baby's shoulders, the chest clip is too low.

See here how the harness strap is behind the baby's shoulders, not above them? Your car seat will adjust according to your baby's height. Always check every week that the harness is at the proper height for your baby. The chest clip is still too low, however.

CORRECT!! The harness strap is behind the baby's shoulders and the chest clip is at the armpit level :D *Please excuse the blanket rolled up under the baby; it is only there to assist me in getting a more real height to this baby doll, which is really really small.

I put the baby's arms up so you can see that the chest clip is at the armpit level.

In a crash, this is what happens to babies whose chest clip is not properly placed at armpit level! The baby can easily be ejected from the seat! Proper chest clip placement is so important!

With a proper chest clip height, you cannot pull the straps around the baby's shoulders. I am pulling the strap as far away from the baby as I can and it is still holding the baby securely.

This is Evie back when she was in an infant bucket seat. The harness straps are behind her shoulders (hard to see with the shoulder pads) and the chest clip is at armpit level.

This is Evie in her new Combi Coccoro convertible seat. The harness is routed behind her shoulders and the chest clip is at armpit level. Remember the new recommendation is for in infants to stay REAR FACING until the age of TWO. Doing this reduces the risk of fatality over twice as much as a forward facing infant between one and two years old!

~Christine