There is nothing more important to a parent than the safety of their child, and there are few places more potentially dangerous for a child than the car. This is why child car seat safety is such an important consideration. A variety of features of a car seat might appeal to a parent. Does it look comfortable? Is it easy to move, and easy to install? And, of course, the price is always an important consideration, as it is for every purchase, as is the endorsement or non-endorsement of friends or colleagues. But the parent must always remember that child car seat safety is the most important thing of all.

The best way to practice child car seat safety is to make sure that the car seat is certified by a reputable organization. The National Highway transportation safety administration may be able to point you to information about child car seat safety, but one of my personal favorite sources is consumer reports. No matter what product you are purchasing, consumer reports can talk to you about its safety, reliability, durability, and value, and infant car seat safety is no exception.

One of the most important thanks you can do for child car seat safety is to make sure that your infant’s car seat is installed correctly. This means that all the straps are properly connected and fastened to ensure that the child is securely strapped in for the whole ride. Although many kids do not like being strapped in so tightly, it is important to make sure that, for their own good, they are. Remember, their life might depend on your child car seat safety.

Above all, remember not to strap the car seat in to the front. This greatly increases the risk of serious injury or death in the event of an accident. If the car seat is strapped in the front, the child can be thrown out of the car, which reduces his or her chance of survival greatly, as you might imagine. Although all kids like the idea of riding up with mommy or daddy, you can’t let them. Even more importantly, always make sure that your child has a car seat to begin with. Under no circumstance should he or she ever ride in someone’s lap.  Although this may seem to be the most obvious part of child car seat safety, you would have a hard time believing how many children die each year due to precisely this careless mistake. Make sure that your child doesn’t become part of that statistic. Practice car seat safety no matter how short is the car journey.