The Good Egg Car Safety Blog

5 steps to strap your child into their car seat correctly

Although strapping your baby in might sound like an easy task, the truth is, it is one of the most common misuses on child car seats.

The harness on a child’s car seat is there to restrain your child, and to absorb the energy from a collision – this blog looks at what you need to do to get it right in five easy steps:



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Step 1:


SNOWSUIT NANIA

 

Remove any thick, puffy or bulky clothing.  Puffy jackets or padded snowsuits – even very frilly tutus or dresses can interfere with the way the harness sits on your child.  The harness needs to sit close to your child’s body to work to the best of its ability, so ensure you remove anything that gets in the way.  To keep your child warm, tightly tuck a blanket around them once they are strapped in or dress them in thin, warm layers.

 

Step 2:


Too low

 

Ensure your harness is at the correct height for your child, an incorrectly adjusted harness will not only be uncomfortable for your child, but potentially dangerous too.  The straps must be as level with their shoulders as possible.

Rear facing : just below the shoulders

Front facing: just above the shoulders

 

Step 3:


twisted harness

 

Ensure your harness is straight and untwisted.  A twisted harness may not absorb the energy from a collision as well as it should do, so it is important to keep an eye on the straps and untwist them as soon as you notice they are not straight.  To untwist your harness, follow this guide:



untwist harness

 

Step 4:


chest pads

 

Pull the straps over your child’s shoulders, and ensure the chest pads are level.

 

Step 5:


tension

 

Pull the harness snug to your child’s body – the straps should be tight enough that you can just slip two fingers flat between your child’s body and their collar bones.

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Recent Comments
Guest — Michelle Reay
My daughter always tries to unbuckle the seat belt, do you have any advice for that behavior?
Tuesday, 09 June 2015 10:51
Guest — Good Egg Safety
Hi Michelle, Thanks for your comment! Does your daughter try to unbuckle the adult belt, or the 5 point harness buckle? Thanks,... Read More
Thursday, 11 June 2015 16:35
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The child car seat harness - Updated

Generally, child car seats come equipped with a 3 point or a 5 point harness in group 0+ seats, and a 5 point harness in a group 1 car seat. The job of the child car seat harness is to restrain the child in the child seat in the event of a collision.

 

Is there a safety difference between a 3 point and a 5 point harness?


Group 0+ rear facing car seats may have either a 3 point harness or a 5 point harness. In a collision the child is pushed back into the seat, which spreads the force across the whole seat back - putting much less force on the child and better protecting their neck and spine. The job of the 3 or 5 point harness is to hold the child in the seat.



Harness Use 3 overlay

Harness Use overlay



A 5 point harness has additional hip straps to help spread the force of a collision. This is very important when forward facing as the harness takes a lot of force which is then spread across the child’s torso.

 

How is the harness attached?


The child car seat harness is made up of two long straps, which attach to the buckle. The harness is secured at either end so that it sits over the strongest points of a child’s body – their hips and shoulders.

The hip straps on the harness are attached to the seat by metal hooks (picture below) which slot through a specific gap in the seat shell. These must always be attached completely and it is worth checking the harness is fully attached every journey.



Hip strap overlay



The shoulder straps on the harness attach at the back of the seat, often to a ‘Y’ shaped metal hook (picture below). The straps should always be securely attached and only removed from the hook if you must re-thread the harness to change the harness height position.



Y hook overlay



Many car seats now come with a harness that you can simply click into a different height position, removing the need to unhook it – this removes the very high risk of the harness being misused.

Each harness strap will have a plastic attachment on it, which joins together to click into the buckle.

 

Harness height


To set the correct harness height, the straps must come over the child's shoulders and down towards the buckle.  The harness must be level with the child's shoulders, although this isn't always possible. If you can't get the straps level with the child's shoulders (due to them being between height limits, for example) then the following is how you can figure out the best height:

Rear facing: Level with, or just below the shoulders.



RF harness height



Front facing: Level with, or just above the shoulders.

 

FF height overlay

 

Harness tension


You should be able to get two fingers flat between your child’s chest and the harness at collar bone level.



harness tension 2 overlay

 

Harness pads


The pads on the straps of a car seat normally need to be pulled down the straps so they sit on the child's chest.  You will often find the pads are attached to fabric, which ensures they are pulled down to the correct height.

 

The pads on this seat need to be pulled down onto the child's chest. 

 

The pads on this seat need to be pulled down onto the child's chest.



Other harness pads are attached to the top of the child seat, and will sit over the child's shoulders.


head support

 

The pads on this seat are attached to the top of the harness


 

The buckle


Every car seat in the UK which has a 3 or a 5 point harness must have a buckle to click into. Both pieces of the harness must come together first, before clicking into the buckle. This is to ensure that both parts of the harness are always attached. The button of the buckle is stress tested to ensure it can withstand the thousands of clicks and un-clicks it will go through in its lifetime. The buckle is also pressure tested to ensure most little fingers can’t un-click it, but that it is also easy to undo in an emergency.



BUCKLE overlay

 

Clothing in the car seat


What children wear when they go in the car differs with each journey, for this reason it is useful to loosen the straps before you take your child out of the car seat – the next time you buckle your child in you can pull the straps tight to ensure the correct tension every journey to suit what your child is wearing.

Puffy winter snowsuits, coats and jackets can cause big problems with the car seat harness – they should never be worn under the harness. The harness is designed to fit close to the child’s body, and it is tested in this way. Puffy snowsuits, coats and jackets create a gap between the child and the harness.  Even if the harness feels as though it is pulled tight, in a collision it may still not work properly.



Jessy coat overlay



Children should be wearing light, thin layers when in the car seat – a thin fleece at the most. Remember, children heat up 3-5 times faster than adults and they do not regulate their body temperature as well as adults. It is very easy for babies and children to overheat in the car; so don’t be tempted to pad them out – your vehicle will soon heat up leaving you with a very hot and sweaty little one for the rest of your journey!



Jessy blanket overlay

 

Cleaning the harness and buckle


Car seats become grubby very quickly and wiping over them with a damp cloth isn’t always enough and a full wash is required! It is very important that the harness is not washed, as this can break down the fibres within the harness and weaken it.

When cleaning the buckle, again wipe over it with a damp cloth and remove any food that is in or around the buckle and red button – hoovering the buckle helps ensure most of the crumbs and muck is removed.



Caution

When cleaning the harness, fully extend it and wipe over it with a damp cloth – nothing more. Do not use fabric cleaners, anti-bacterial sprays or soap on it as the chemicals in these products can damage the harness.

 

Removing the covers


Some car seats have easy to remove covers and you don’t have to remove the harness at all to get the cover off – however there are still lots of car seats where you do need to remove the harness to get the cover off!

When removing the covers, it is very easy for the harness to become twisted or incorrectly routed or fitted. When you are taking the cover off, as often as possible, re-thread and attach the harness back where it is supposed to go to help avoid it becoming incorrectly routed or twisted.

 

FAQ

 

My child has the habit of un-clicking his harness, what can I do?


This is extremely frustrating to any parent or carer; and very scary the first time the little one finds out they can do it! Some children will learn to undo the harness buckle, even with the regulated amount of force it must take to pop the buckle open.

1) Check the harness height – if the harness is too low, children can ‘wedge’ their shoulders under the straps and use the force to push down on the buckle.

2) Check the harness tension.

If your child continues to undo their buckle and they don’t seem to be growing out of the habit, you may want to try them in another weight suitable child restraint to see if they are less able to unclick the buckle on that seat.

A child un-clicking the buckle is not a good reason to move them up to a high back booster and adult seat belt, especially if they are below the weight or height limits.



Caution

The buckle must NEVER be obstructed – it must always be accessible to allow the child to be released from the seat quickly in an emergency.

 

My child wriggles out of the straps – what can I do?


As with the above issue, this happens very often! First things to check:

1) Harness height – is the harness at the correct level?

2) Harness tension – is the harness too tight or loose on the child?

3) Clothing – is the clothing allowing a gap for the child to wriggle their arms through? Thick and puffy jackets often cause this!

4) There are some after market products you can try with your seat, that are designed to stop children wriggling out of the straps.  If you choose to try an aftermarket product, ensure you read and fully understand the instructions of use before using it with your child's car seat.  Also make sure that it is not interfering with the way the harness sits on the child.

Maxi Cosi recommends the '5 point plus' for use with their car seats.

If the child continues slipping the harness, try them in a different weight appropriate restraint to see if they will wriggle the straps off in that seat.

A child wriggling the straps off is not a good reason to move them up to a high back booster with adult belt – especially if they do not meet the weight or height limits.

 

Alternative seat:


If your child does not seem to be growing out of the habit of removing their straps or un-doing the buckle, an impact shield style seat may solve the issue. These seats do not use a 5 point harness, but a “shield” is placed across the child.



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  102227 Hits
  14 Comments
Recent Comments
Guest — Mira
Hello! Would it be possible to include some information on the position of the pads that slide up and down the harness straps? I h... Read More
Thursday, 14 January 2016 09:34
Guest — Good Egg Safety
Hello! Thanks for your comment! The chest pads need to be positioned on the chest of the child - quite often, the pads will be a... Read More
Thursday, 14 January 2016 10:22
Guest — Lisa Clark
Great article - I have another question on shoulder pads! We have a seat where the straps are attached to the seat body, to ensur... Read More
Wednesday, 27 January 2016 15:32
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14 Comments

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