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Home › Articles › General Safety Issues › A Safe Ride

A Safe Ride

Car Seats are Serious Business

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Watch Out for Hand-me-downs
Be careful if your neighbor offers you her old seat, or you see a car seat at resale shop or garage sale. Car seats have a life of about five to six years. After that, the plastics can be weakened, and other parts can be fatigued and not adequately protect your child in a crash. Buy only from the original owner. Car seats are only good for one crash, and then should be replaced. The original owner can assure you that the seat was never in a crash. Never buy a car seat from a thrift store or consignment shop, since you will not know its history. If you decide to get a used seat, check out the recall information. You can find car seat recalls on iParenting.com's Recall Section and from the National Highway Traffic Safety Association.

 

As Your Baby Grows
Make sure your baby is not too heavy or tall for the car seat. Read the instructions to find out height and weight limitations. Younger infants must face to the rear because their spines are weaker, and they might sustain injury in a crash. Older children may face forward. After your child outgrows a car seat, move him or her to a booster seat. A seat belt-positioning booster seat will keep the seatbelt from crossing the child's neck or head. The seatbelt will be across the child's shoulder, which can sustain the force of a crash. Keep the child in the booster seat until he or she is four and a half feet tall, or exceeds the weight limit on the seat. Your child may be the only 7-year-old in a booster seat, bt he or she will be much safer in an accident than a child who is small and buckled in an adult seat belt.

 


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