BeSafe’s best tips for a safer journey
Of course you as a parent want your child to travel as safely as possible in the car. Choosing the right child car seat is an obvious first step to achieve this. However, there are also several other things you as a parent can do for the safety of your children. Below are BeSafe’s best tips for a safer journey.
Make sure the child car seat is properly installed
No matter how safe a child car seat is, it will not work as intended if it is not installed correctly. It is ultimately of course your responsibility as a parent that the seat is properly installed according to instructions.
Especially if seats are moved frequently between cars, it is important that it is fitted correctly every time. If you are unsure, please visit your local retailer and ask them to show you how the child car seat should be fitted.
Tighten the the internal harness
It is extremely important that the the internal harness is securely tightened and placed near the child’s body. To check if the harness is tight enough, try to make a fold in the shoulder belts. If this is still possible, the harness is not tightened enough yet.
Keep the carrying handle in an upright position
The handle of a baby car seat is often marketed as a carrying handle, which it is. But above all the carrying handle of BeSafe baby car seats serves as a roll-bar in the event of a collision. The carrying handle on BeSafe’s baby car seats should therefore always be in an upright position during a journey. This protects against rotation in the event of a rear collision.
No loose objects in the car
Entertaining kids in the car can be difficult and many parents choose to provide their children with various toys or even tablets during the trip. Just keep in mind that loose objects like these will move around and become extremely dangerous in the event of a collision. The same applies
for other luggage.
Ensure that everything is secured properly, and that there is no risk of loose objects inside the vehicle. To safely use tablets inside the car, we recommend you to place them inside the crash-tested BeSafe tablet & seat cover.
Use accessories that help you tackle both large and small challenges
BeSafe has developed many smart accessories that make car journeys easier and safer. One example is the new sleeping help cushion. When falling asleep in the car, children just like adults sometimes have their head falling forward. The sleeping help naturally invites them to rest their heads sideward, thereby staying within the protection area of the seat’s headrest. Another tip is to always use a baby mirror with integrated soft lights to be able to keep an eye on your child in the back seat even when it’s dark outside.
When choosing accessories, always check that they have been crash-tested! If for example a mirror or tablet-holder has not been crash-tested, there is a risk that they could disconnect in an impact and become dangerous projectiles.
The right headrest height makes buckling up easier
For BeSafe seats, the shoulder belts on our baby and toddler seats should always be at a “90-degree angle” onto the shoulders (but don’t forget to take the angle of the backrest into account). With the right headrest height, the risk of a head loll is
reduced and buckling your child up will go much more smoothly.
Never travel with puffy winter jackets
The jacket’s puffiness can prevent you from tightening the harness well enough, giving too much space inside the belts when the jacket gets compressed in an
accident or under harsh braking.
Read all about it and find alternatives on how to still stay warm inside the car during winter
Did you know that it is quite common for babies to cry in their baby car seat at some point?
Does your baby cry a lot in their baby car seat? Don’t worry, this does not mean that they do not want to go rear facing anymore. As babies’ senses develop when growing older, they want to see and experience more of their surroundings in the car.
Baby car seats, however, are usually quite low in the car and make them face the backrest of the rear seats or the roof of the vehicle. Moving to a toddler seat quite often helps to stop the crying, as they are now sitting higher in the vehicle, can see their surroundings through the side and rear window and can even communicate with the parents via a baby mirror.
Please do always consult with your local retailer in person though to check if your child is ready to move to a suitable next stage car seat.
Keep your child rear facing
It is proven to be five times safer for a child up to four years to travel in a rear facing child car seat. Therefore, choose a seat that allows your child to continue to travel rear facing as long as possible.
Read more about Rear facing 5 times safer here
