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You travel with precious cargo: your child! And because of this precious cargo, car seat safety is important to you (and to us!). We know it can be a challenge to properly buckle your child into a car seat, so, we’ve created this helpful guide to ensure your little ones are buckled correctly every time. And guess what? We’ve consulted with some of the experts like the National Highway Traffic Administration, The Car Seat Lady, Safe Kids Worldwide, and various car seat manufacturers (take a look at this helpful guide from Chicco). 

We know there are many aspects to securing your child safely in their car seat so we’ve made sure to include helpful tips about: the buckle, the harness, the webbing, rear facing and forward facing car seats, and more! Review this guide so you can be confident that your children are riding safely in their car seats; and better yet, review this with any other family member or caregiver that might be transporting your precious cargo as well! 

12 tips to safely and properly buckle your child into a car seat: 

1. First and foremost, use the right type of car seat.

The first step to keeping your child safe in their car seat is to make sure they are riding in the right type of seat! There are rear facing car seats, forward facing car seats, convertible car seats, high back booster seats, no back booster seats, infant car seats, and more! You’ll want to ensure you are using a car seat that is safest for your child’s age, weight and height. Make sure you are also following all car seat laws and regulations in your state. Check out this blog for a state by state child passenger safety guide!

2. Always refer to the manual.

This is VERY important. When you’re installing the car seat into your car, ALWAYS refer to the manual. And when you buckle your child into their car seat, make sure you are referring to the manufacturer’s manual for your car seat to ensure you are following the right steps. 

3. Take photos.

Before you change the harness and “settings” on your car seat, take photos of where straps go, where the head rest goes, holes that the harness should feed through. That way, when you’re putting it all together again, you have a helpful image to refer to. And once you’ve set up your child’s car seat with the right settings for their height and weight, take another picture so you remember! 

4. Before putting your child in the car seat, make sure they are dressed properly.

Do not place blankets, thick clothing, or winter coats underneath the car seat harness. You want the car seat harness securely touching your child’s body and holding them in place. Big and bulky clothing or blankets prohibit this. In cold weather, you may dress your baby in several thin, close-fitting layers and cover them with a blanket if necessary.

5. Do not use any third party accessories.

No need to add any accessories, toys, etc. to your baby’s car seat unless they are approved by the manufacturer or they come with the car seat itself. These third party items present a possible choking, strangulation, or suffocation hazard and generally are not safety crash tested. 

6. Placement matters!

When placing your child or baby in the car seat, make sure they are placed all the way in the seat with their back firmly touching the back of the car seat. Your child’s bottom and back should be against the seat. For infants, hold the baby’s thighs and wiggle the baby all the way back and down in the seat. For older children, teach them to scooch their back and bottom all the way back. There should never be any slouching. 

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7. Make sure there are no twists or tangles.

Look over the car seat and the harness system to make sure there are no twists or tangles in the straps as well as no broken parts or pieces. 

8. The car seat’s harness system is crucial.

The harness system in your child’s car seat is what prevents them from major injuries in a crash and what keeps them in the protective shell of the car seat. It’s very important to restrain them in the harness properly. 

  • Shoulder Straps: For rear-facing car seats, straps should be placed at or below your child’s shoulders. For forward facing car seats, straps should be at or above your child’s shoulders.
  • Crotch Strap and Buckle: Should be as close to the child’s body as possible. 
  • Should Strap Covers: The shoulder strap covers that come with your car seat are almost always optional. Check your car seat’s manual to see if they are required. If they aren’t, you may want to take them off for a few reasons – children find them uncomfortable, they have a tendency to twist the harness, and they are almost always too large for newborns. 

9. Loosen the harness.

So that you can properly secure and tighten your little one into their car seat, it’s important that you loosen the harness as much as possible. This will allow you to place your child in the seat properly and buckle them with ease prior to tightening the harness system. There is usually a lever, button or release mechanism near the bottom of the car seat and by baby’s feet that will allow you to loosen the harness and pull. 

10. Buckle and clip!

Once baby is in the seat with their back all the way to the back of the car seat and once you have loosened the harness, buckle the crotch buckle until you hear it click and clip the chest piece together. At this point, you can slide the chest piece toward your child’s belly so you can tighten the harness system.

11. Tighten the harness.

Find the tail of the harness (usually near the button or lever you used to loosen the harness) and pull firmly until your child is tightly secured into the car seat. The harness is tight enough when you cannot pinch any excess webbing and there are no gaps between your child and the harness. PRO TIP: do the pinch test with the shoulder strap of the harness. If you can pinch any of the harness at your child’s shoulders between your fingers, the harness is too loose. When it is tight enough and you do the pinch test, your fingers will simply slip off. 

12. Slide the chest clip up!

Now that the harness is tight and secure, slide the chest piece up to your child’s armpit level. This is critical to ensure that in the event of an accident, your child’s internal organs are not injured by the chest clip. Their rib cage and chest bones will bear the pressure of the chest clip in the event of a crash. 

13. Give your child and the seat a last safety inspection before you hit the road!

Your kiddo is strapped in and secure. They are ready to hit the road and go on an adventure! Make sure to give the car seat and your kiddo a once over to ensure everything is good to go. 

So there you have it! All the steps and tips you need to properly secure your child in their car seat. We hope this gives you (and any other caregivers) confidence knowing your little one is as safe as possible in their car seat and on the road. 

Want even more help! Take a look at this blog for general car seat safety information. You may also want to have a professional take a look at your skills – you can find local Child Passenger Safety Technicians in your area who can assess your car seat and give you advice. Fire stations, police stations and services like Tot Squad can also help to ensure your car seat is properly installed! 

Happy Trails!