Welcome to my Child Passenger Safety Blog!
I am Michelle - a certified Child Passenger Safety Technician,
(better known as a carseat tech.)
I decided to start this blog, so that my other blog can be devoted entirely to homeschooling/family happenings.... and I don't have to 'clutter' it with CPS stuff.
Besides, child passenger safety is such an important topic that I decided that it deserves a space all it's own where I can post articles, information and answer questions about it!
Why it matters if your carseat is installed properly!
The clips below demonstrate some of the most common misuse errors that we CPSTs see at seat check events. Unfortunately, these common mistakes, which may seem rather 'small', can have deadly consequences. The first one is a loose install.
A properly installed carseat will have less than 1"inch of movement at the belt path. (1 inch - that's about the size of a quarter.) If you can wiggle your child's carseat (at the belt path - not the top of the seat!) more than that...it is not installed properly!
In this first clip, the seat appears to have about 5-6 inches of slack - about the size of a can of soda.
The carseat in the foreground is installed correctly - with less than 1 inch of movement at the belt path.
The carseat in the background is the one with the faulty install. Watch how much more the dummy in the rear seat is thrown about - (Take special notice of his head/neck!)
Proper harness placement is also extremely important.
If your child is rear-facing, the harness straps need to be at or below their shoulders. If they are forward-facing, the harness straps need to be at or above their shoulders.
This next clip shows what can happen if the harness straps are improperly placed (below their shoulders FF). :-(
And this last clip shows what can happen in you accidentally thread the seatbelt (or LATCH belt) through the wrong belt path. This seat has been installed forward facing, but the seatbelt has been placed through the rear-facing belt guides. (This is a very common mistake, and one we see quite often at seat check events.)
Please follow the manufacturer's directions when installing all carseats, and if at all possible have them inspected by a certified CPST.
(Reminder: Not all police officers/fire fighters are certified, so please ask to see credentials if getting help from your local police/fire agency.)
Temperatures are dropping and folks are breaking out the winter apparel.
Hats, mittens, scarves and boots.... But when it comes to kids in carseats ....hold the winter jackets, please!
You see, when a child is placed into a carseat wearing a bulky winter coat, it's almost impossible to get the harness straps, (or seat belt it they are in a booster,) tight enough to secure that child properly.
In a properly secured harness there should be less that one inch of slack.
(In other words, you shouldn't be able to "pinch an inch")
Let's take a look at some photos of my daughter, Katie, in her carseat.
In the first photo she's wearing her winter parka,
and I have tightened the straps of her harness as far as I can get them. As you can see, this type of jacket is great for playing in the snow,
but it doesn't work so well in the car.
Not only was it difficult to work the straps around her coat,
but you can see at her shoulders how distorted the harness is.
Now take a look at what happens when we remove her coat and re-buckle her
without making any adjustments to the harness. Look at all of that slack?!!
Often parents will say,
"But I DO pull the straps tight. I'm pretty sure that my child is safe - even in their coat."
Some even think that a coat adds protection because of all of the padding. (It doesn't.)
What happens in an accident is that when the harness pushes on all of that (warm but puffy) jacket insulation, it causes the fabric to compress. This puts the the child at great risk for being ejected....
right out of their harness, and possibly right out of the vehicle as well.
But...does this really happen? (Sadly yes.) When I took my class to become certified as a CPST, there were several trauma/ER nurses and EMTs also getting certified. They all reported that that had witnessed this first-hand, and one said that last year alone, she recalled 3 children who had been ejected and killed because they had been wearing bulky snowsuits.
Now, besides snowsuits, there are other dangerous mistakes that many parents make in the winter when it comes to carseats. And most often it deals with aftermarket product like these.
These products, just like a jacket, add bulk between the restraint, the child, and the harness, and interfere with the ability to tighten the harness properly. (Especially if you have to lay the child on top of the product - or any part goes between the child and the harness.) Remember the acronym C.R.A.P. !
Please don't use it!!!
So...what's a parent to do - especially if you live where its cold and snowy?
(Well...as a Wisconsinite I can tell you...I know a thing or two about cold firsthand!) ;-)
First of all - the best thing you can do is - warm up your car before your put your child(ren) in!
Not only is it better for your engine, but it's more comfortable for all passengers if you let it warm up - even for just a few minutes. ( And just to mention...for safety's sake... make sure you warm it up in a ventilated area!) ;-)
Second - dress your child in light layers.
A t-shirt or some thermal long johns, a turtle neck, a sweater, and then a fleece jacket, (and don't forget the hats and mittens!) If they're just running from the garage or parking lot to their house or school, this may be all you need. (And once inside they can peel off the layers to make themselves more comfortable.)
If it's REALLY cold (and here in WI it is!) then a nice heavy-duty Polartec fleece jacket is the way to go. They are incredibly warm without being incredibly bulky. ( Land's End, LL Bean, and Columbia all have nice fleece pullovers and zip-ups!)
Here Katie is modeling her Columbia fleece jacket.
Yet another trick, (as modeled by my other daughter,) is
once the car is warmed up, put the kids into their carseats in their regular clothes
and then have them slip their jackets on backwards. And finally, if your child is still cold....a nice warm blanket does wonders!
For younger children there are even more options.
Products like the Car Seat Poncho or a 'shower cap' style of carseat cover are great!
These products are different from the previous types of carseat products, because they fit over the top of the child restraint, and therefore they do not interfere with the harness.
Can't afford a poncho? You can even make your own by cutting a hole in the center of a fleece blanket for your child's head. (I added some trim on mine...but you wouldn't have to.) ;-)
Just lift the blanket/poncho above the carseat and buckle the child
and when you're done, lower the blanket around the carseat. Nice & toasty!
So....when the weather outside is frightful,
keep your delightful children safe and snug in their carseats!
Child Safety A Must, Especially During Summer Vacation
Click here to watch the NBC vacation safety segment that aired recently on The Today Show, featuring Alan Korn of Safe Kids USA, and the Michalson family, Safe Kids USA parent advocates.
Safe Kids USA offers these tips for keeping kids safe during your vacation:
Properly secure all children younger than 13 in a back seat for every ride in the car. Keep children in the right type of car seat or booster seat until adult lap and shoulder belts fit them correctly. If you are flying to your destination, bring any car seats with you so your children ride safely in cars while on vacation.
Make sure your children wear a helmet and other protective gear every time they bike, skate, skateboard or ride a scooter. Bring the gear with you if none will be available while you're traveling.
Bring your own folding playpen rather than using a borrowed crib. If you do use a hotel's crib, inspect it for broken or missing parts to make sure it is not defective, damaged or even recalled from the market. Visit http://www.recalls.gov/ to check the model number.
Actively supervise children in or around water. Never take your eyes off of your children. Always make sure your children wear life jackets when riding on boats or playing in or near open bodies of water.
One of the most important things we learned in our car seat technician class was to ALWAYS read the manual for each and every car seat!
All of them are different, and they all have different instructions by which to install and use them. This bit of advice will really come into play when discussing today's topic - after-market products.
Today I am going to discuss one of the most common mistakes that parents often make when using a child restraint, and that is the use of after-market products.
Most parents just do not realize the dangers of these products, or they think...
"they wouldn't be for sale if they weren't safe."
But the truth is that almost all carseat instruction manuals expressly forbid the use of after-market products, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recommends against the use of any product not specifically recommended by the manufacturer of the carseat.
Such products are not tested by either the carseat manufacturer nor the government.
Some of these products may even claim on their packaging to meet government standards, (like FMVSS 213, ) but it should be noted that FMVSS 213 DOES NOT cover these products!
FMVSS 213 only covers child restraints, and no mention of any type of after-market products is made!
One fact that most parents don't know is that by using these products
the child restraint manufacture has the right to 'void' the warranty' of the car seat,
AND they may not be held liable if the seat fails to perform in a crash,
because they parent failed to use the seat correctly...as stated per the instructions.
So once again....read the manual !!!
SO.... What are these 'after-market products' that I'm speaking about???
They include,but are not limited to: (click on links for examples)
-infant head inserts (those U-shaped pillows to support their heads)
* (Unless this CAME with the seat - If it came with the actual seat, then it has been crash-tested for that particular seat, and should be considered safe to use.)
- infant body support cushions
-Shoulder Strap Covers
* (Unless these CAME with the seat - If they came with the actual seat, then they have been crash-tested for that particular seat, and should be considered safe to use.)
- custom made carseat covers
- covers that are not specifically sold by the manufacturer of your child restraint for that specific seat
- Bundle-Me's(or similar products that are designed for winter warmth...anything that goes UNDER/behind the child is not allowed. The covers that go around the outside of the carseat like THIS are safe - because they do not interfere with the harness system.)
- plastic 'seat saver' mats that go under the seats
- seat-belt positioning devices
- add on cup holders
- leg rests
- 'play trays'
- toy barsthat attach to the handles or sides of infant seats ( These are fine when the carseat is not in the vehicle, but not when the carseat is being used in the vehicle.)
I am going to separate these products into a couple of different categories, and discuss why they are dangerous.
The first group includes products like: infant head supports, body supports, shoulder strap covers, and custom carseat covers.
The reason that these products are unacceptable is because they all put extra padding between the child and child restraint. In a crash, that padding will compress, and it could cause the child to be ejected. Also, many of them interfere with the harness system, and do not allow the harness to be tightened adequately enough.
If your child need additional head/body support it is better to roll washcloths or receiving blankets and place them beside the child to support them.
After-market covers should not be used, because they may contain more or less padding than the original cover, and so they could perform differently in a crash, OR they may not meet federal standards for being flame retardant.
Carseat mats and seat savers are a no-no because they could cause the base of the carseat to slip in a crash. Even if it seems like a tight install...It is better not to use something that could jeopardize the ability of the seat to function, (and...it is also forbidden in most instruction manuals!)
If you absolutely feel that you must put something down to protect your vehicle seats, a thin, single layer of towel is acceptable.
The third group includes things like trays, foot rests, cup holders and toy bars.
While these products may not interfere with the function of the carseat itself, they all could act as projectiles or objects that may come into contact with a child's face in a crash.
As my instructor stated..."Imagine throwing that product as hard as you can at your child's face.
If they would be hurt from that.... don't use that product!"
It all boils down to the reason that these products are SO dangerous is that they have not been crash tested with every seat, so there is no telling how your seat will perform in a crash when using one of these devices.
Essentially, your childwill be a crash-test dummy!
Finally, there is one after-market product that is in a class all by itself.
In my opinion it is one of the most dangerousafter-market products out there.
(Which is why it is actually illegal to use in several states!)
It is called the Mighty -Tite. Basically the Mighty-Tite is a ratcheting system that you add to your vehicle seat-belt, in order to tighten the belt.
The trouble with this product is that, by design, it stretches (and stresses) the vehicle seatbelt. (This can lead to fraying and tears, and there have even been reports of the Mighty Tight cutting through seatbelts!) Now, seatbelts needto stretch in a collision, it helps 'ride down' the crash forces. But, if you stretch the belt too much before-hand, all of those forces that would go through the seatbelt are going to be transferred to the carseat... and to your child.
The Mighty-Tite can also give a false sense of security. It may seem like your car-seat is properly installed, when in reality you may have made many critical errors.
As a fellow carseat technician on car-seat.org stated....
" They are death traps. Take them off!
Go to a tech and have them show you how to install your seats properly if you need a hand.
That's their job, don't let them just install it for you.
But those are evilness in a $15 package.
Your seat still isn't in properly, it's just not moving!" Wendy Thomas - C.P.S.T.
..... and for still more info on the evils of these devices, please look here!
So to sum this all up , I will leave you with my instructor's definition of after market products.
He said that all after-market products are
Child Restraint Accessories Prohibited
I'll let you figure out that little acrostic/acronym....
(I'm sorry if it's a bit vulgar...but it gets the point across quite well about these dangerous products!)
Please, please do not use after-market products!!!
Here is my (long awaited) entry about Booster Seats!
Booster seats are probably the most often misunderstood child restraints.
Parents often have many question about them including:
Why does my child need one?
Which type of booster seat is best?
At what age can I move my child from a harnessed seat to a booster?
How long does my child have to ride in a booster?
So I'll try to answer each question in turn.
Why does a child need a booster seat?
Before booster seats, when a child outgrew their harnessed child restraint (usually around 4 years old) they were moved to a regular seat belt. The problem is that seat belts are designed for adults. On an adult, the seat belt fits across the strong bones of the hips/pelvis. These bones can withstand the intense crash forces, but on a child the belt rides-up across the soft part of the child's belly (where all of the child's internal organs are.) This caused massive internal injuries to the child, and became known as 'seat-belt syndrome.'
(As demonstrated in this video)
Another problem with adult belts is that, because they don't fit children properly, (they often rub on their necks,) this causes the child to tuck the shoulder belt portion of the belt either under their arm, or behind their backs, in effect turning the belt into a lap-belt.
(Watch THIS video to see why lap belts are not safe for anyone!)
Which type of booster seat is best? There are many different types of booster seats available.
Highback, Backless, and
Combinations seats (harnessed seats that convert to boosters by removing the harness). There really is no 'best' booster seat on the market.
The best booster is one that fits your child, fits your vehicle,
and is one that you and your child will use properly every time!
Some people prefer the extra side-impact protection that a highbacked booster may offer, or the extra head and neck support, which is necessary if your vehicle does not have headrests!
(It is also important to note that a booster seat may never be used with a lap belt. It must always be used with a lap-shoulder belt combination.)
That being said...there are some boosters that should NEVER be used!
1. Any booster that has been recalled,
has an unknown history (i.e. - you bought it at a rummage sale,) or is over 6 years old.
Carseats DO expire, and boosters are no exception. And contrary to some opinions...This is NOT just a ploy by the carseat manufacturers to get you to buy more seats.
Plastic breaks down over time, and becomes brittle. This process is expedited by extremes in temperature, (like sitting in a car through hot summers and cold winters.)
Please don't risk your child's life - replace all car seats after 6 years.
2. The second type of carseat that should NEVER be used is a shield booster.
These look very much like backless boosters, except they have a plastic shield that fits over the lap portion of the child.
These types of boosters were very popular awhile back.
Unfortunately, several children were killed or seriously injured because of them.
(The shield is too far away from the child - and the children were ejected.) ALL of these seats have been recalled - If you have one, PLEASE destroy it!!! For more info on the dangers of these boosters, please look here!
At what age can I move my child from a harnessed seat to a booster? The thing to remember is that every step UP in carseats is a step DOWN in safety.
The absolute safest possible way for a child to ride is harnessed and rear-facing.
Next is harnessed forward-facing,
Then a booster,
And finally an adult seat belt.
It is most beneficial for a child to remain in each of the above steps for as long as possible!
Unfortunately, societal 'norms' and 'peer pressure' have caused most parents to move children to that next step too soon. Parents (for some odd reason) can't wait to turn their kids forward facing, or to move them up to a 'big boy/girl booster'....even though it is not in the best interests of their child safety-wise!
Yes... according to the manufacturers directions a 30 lb 3 year old 'can' fit in a booster - but are they truly safe that way??? Not really.
There's a saying, "Boosters Are For BIG Kids!"
This is not only to encourage 'big kids' into thinking that they are not 'too cool' for boosters, but also to encourage parents that they shouldn't move their 'little kids' into a booster too soon!
A child should not be moved to a booster until they are ready to sit correctly in the car (without leaning, fidgeting, unbuckling, throwing a tantrum, etc.) - EVERY time.
In my opinion, a child is not ready for a booster until 5 or 6 years of age.
There are MANY (affordable) options available for keeping a child harnessed past 40 pounds!
(Ask me if you would like some suggestions!!!) How long does my child have to ride in a booster?
1. Every state has it's own legal requirements regarding how long children need to be in a child restraint. Check here to see what your state's requirements are.
2. Is your child at least 4'9" (That is the height that safety experts have determined is the bare minimum for riding in an adult seatbelt.)
3. But, the most important determination is... Does your child pass the 5 Step Test?
The 5-Step Test.
1. Does the child sit all the way back against the auto seat? 2. Do the child's knees bend comfortably at the edge of the auto seat
and do their feet touch the floor? 3. Does the belt cross the shoulder between the neck and arm? 4. Is the lap belt as low as possible, touching the thighs? 5. Can the child stay seated like this for the whole trip?
My own kids will ride in boosters until they can no longer fit in them! If you have any more questions about booster seats - please feel free to ask!!!
One of the things that I hear most often is, "Why do kids need carseats? After all...our parents didn't have them when we were little and we all survived."
Although this may be true to a point, this statement is quite misleading. After all...there are other things that the previous generation thought were safe that turned out to be very dangerous after all, too (lead paint, asbestos, etc.)
The roads today are filled with more vehicles, the vehicles are bigger (SUV's, vans, etc.) and they are driving at faster speeds than compared to when we were kids. Motor vehicle accidents are one of the single greatest killers of Americans today and the number one cause of accidental death for children.
How do carseats help?
First, a little physics lesson. Newton's Law of Motion states that: An object in motion continues in motion at the original speed
until it connects with an outside force.
That outside force can be something harmful (a steering wheel, windshield, the pavement)
or it can be something designed to protect (a seatbelt or a child restraint.)
Carseats work because they help to spread those (crash) forces over a wide area of the child's body, and help the child to 'ride down' the crash. Carseats also help keep the child in the vehicle/prevent them from being ejected! Some people feel that carseats are unnecessary,
because they do not realize that the forces generated by a crash are SO tremendously large.
Do you know how much your child weighs?
The mathematical equation for figuring out the forces produced in a crash is as following Weight x Speed = Force Therefore, a 20 lb baby in a car going 25 mph requires 500 lbs of restraining force!
This is also why it is so important that everyone in the car buckles up!
Because an unrestrained 120 lb adult in that same crash is going to become the a 2500 lb projectile!
Sometimes, well-meaning Christian parents decide not to use a carseat, (or they use one improperly,) because they think,
"God is in control. He wouldn't allow anything to happen to my child that wasn't in His plan,"
and, they are correct.....
But, God also gives us the knowledge, wisdom and the resources to help us protect our families.
Ultimately our children's lives are in His hands - but as the old saying goes,
"God helps those that help themselves,"
and I truly believe that carseats are a lifesaving tool that we can use
to help protect our most precious blessings...our children!
Q's & A's
Q: Daisy asks: What is the "official" weight, height and age of a child who no longer needs a carseat? A: There is no 'official' answer to this question, as there are many variables to consider
1. Every state has it's own legal requirements regarding how long children need to be in a child restraint. Check here to see what your state's requirements are.
2. Is your child at least 4'9" (That is the height that safety experts have determined is the bare minimum for riding in an adult seatbelt.)
3. But, the most important determination is... Does your child pass the 5 Step Test?
The 5-Step Test.
1. Does the child sit all the way back against the auto seat? 2. Do the child's knees bend comfortably at the edge of the auto seat
and do their feet touch the floor? 3. Does the belt cross the shoulder between the neck and arm? 4. Is the lap belt as low as possible, touching the thighs? 5. Can the child stay seated like this for the whole trip?
I've seen so many weekly memes on other blogs Monday Meanderings, Wordless Wednesday, Thankful Thursday, etc.
So, in honor of my recent certification as a Child Passenger Safety Technician,
I have decided to do a weekend feature called "Safety Saturday/Sunday."
I will be posting (as often as I can) on how to help keep your kids safe in the car!
There is SO much to share, and to write it all in to one entry would be WAY too long,
so I have decided to break it into smaller chunks.
I will also welcome questions from readers, (like a Q & A session)
and suggestions for future topics.
Are there any topics that you have a particular interest in?
(Boosters, rear facing, LATCH, misuse/common errors, specific seats, etc?)
What would you all like to hear about first?
As you can see, this type of jacket is great for playing in the snow, 
Nice & toasty! 
Basically the Mighty-Tite is a ratcheting system that you add to your vehicle seat-belt, in order to tighten the belt.
Backless, 
and 
There really is no 'best' booster seat on the market. 
