Car Safety: Remove Thick Winter Coats

Remove thick winter jackets

Most winter jackets have a filling material like down or feathers, which are designed to keep your child warm by creating a thick “air buffer” in between your child and the cold air outside. However, when placing your child in the car seat with such a jacket on, the coat’s thickness can prevent you from tightening the harness close to your child’s upper body.

Why you should avoid the combination of winter jackets and car seats

As temperatures are dropping and you protect your child against the cold outside with a winter jackets, taking that coat off before going on a drive is not necessarily something that comes to anyone’s mind. That is why we as a car seat manufacturer do what we can to get the following message across each year before winter sets in: In the event of an accident or even just harsh braking, the seat’s harness may not be correctly tightened over the child’s body if they wear a winter jacket. As a result, the car seat cannot keep your child as firmly in place as it is designed to. 

1. 1. In the first picture, it looks like the harness is tightened well and that it cannot be pulled any tighter.
   2. In the middle picture when keeping the same harness settings and then taking the jacket off, it becomes clear that there is a lot of space between your child’s upper body and the harness.
   3. In contrast, the last picture shows how tight the harness should be when buckling up your child correctly.

In the event of an impact where your child is pushed out of the seat and into the harness, the forces are so strong that the air in the coat is released. This results in your child having too much space for movement, as the harness is not tight enough to hold them back securely.

Thus, when travelling with children in winter, we strongly encourage you to avoid having them wear thick winter jackets.

Here at Hey! Little One we have you covered with a range of fleece jackets and onesies to keep your baby or child safe and warm in the car!

BABY CLOTHES KIDS SOFT FLEECE ROMPERS KIDS

BABY POLAR FLEECE JACKET NAVY BLUE STRIPED THIN LONG SLEEVE STAND COLLAR TOP

JUMPSUIT COAT MALE AND FEMALE BABY FLEECE-LINED CARTOON BEAR

Source: https://www.besafe.com/gb/safety-tips/safety-education/travel-safely-during-winter/