NEED ONLINE LOANS? - Apply for Loans Online today - Click Here!

Making use of a car seat is the first and most important step in helping to assure the safety of your children in a automobile. However just owning a car seat is not adequate in itself: the car seat has to be used, and it needs to be used correctly. Here are some useful actions you can take to assure that your kids will be as secure as possible in their car seat.

- Always make certain that you completely read and understand the manufacturer's recommendations on how to use the car seat properly. Improper car seat usage is the single-biggest cause of car seat failure. In addition, read the owner's manual for your vehicle as it concerns the use of car seats. Most owner's manuals have detailed recommendations for car seat usage and these recommendations should always be followed.

- To increase the safety of your children, always install the car seat in the rear set of your car, never put the car seat in the front seat. for maximum safety, you should place the car set in the middle of the rear seat to increase security against side-impact collisions.

- If your car seat can only be used in the front seat (perhaps there is no back seat), only use it if there is no front seat passenger airbag or if the airbag can be turned off. And then make sure that the airbag is indeed turned off. Never use a car seat in the front seat of a vehicle when the passenger-side airbag is enabled.

- Keep your toddler/infant in their rear-facing car seat for as long as they meet the weight and size standards for that car seat in that configuration. In general, it is safer for your child to be facing to the rear.

- When you place your kid in the car seat, be sure the harness fits snugly and be sure to use the chest strap. The chest strap should sit across the chest as per the manufacturer's instructions. If the chest strap is too low, your child may not be secure in an accident. If the chest strap is too high, it may crush your child's neck in an accident.

- As soon as your child gets to big or heavy for their car seat, you should use a booster seat until such time as the seat belt fits them properly. Usually this is until they are about 80 pounds or 4' 9" tall. Check your vehicle owner's guide for the specifics with your car. When it does fit properly, the shoulder belt should fit over the shoulders, not the neck, and the lap belt should fit across the hips, not the belly.

- After you suppose you have your car seat correctly installed, have the car seat installation checked by a certified car seat technician. This can be done in minutes, usually at no charge. Check http://www.seatcheck.org/ to find the closest seat check location to you.

- Avoid used car seats unless you know the history and age of the car seat. Do not buy car seats more than five years old, or car seats that have been in an accident. Be certain that used car seats still have all of their labels with the manufacturing information, manufacturing date, and model number. In addition, make sure that the instructions are available; never purchase a car seat without the instruction manual.

- If your car comes equipped with the LATCH system for car seats, make sure you get LATCH-compatible car seats. Using the LATCH system makes car seat installation easier, more secure, and it is less likely that the car seats will be installed incorrectly. Still, the installation should still be examined by a certified car seat technician once it is complete.

- Look at the web site for the manufacturer of your car. Many automobile manufacturer's website will list, on a per-model basis, the car seats that they recommend for use in their vehicles.

This Home & Family article is provided by Articleteller - The Free Article Directory http://www.articleteller.com

Marsha is a full-time mom with 3 kids and she's had plenty of chances to use lots of car seats. You can read her car seat reviews at carseat-reviews.com.

Please Rate this Home & Family Article

Car Seat Safety Tips

5 out of 54 out of 53 out of 52 out of 51 out of 5 

Not yet Rated