Need help desperately with proof for dh

[monzogary]

I am having a major fight with dh about why to take heavy coats off the kids in the car. I have sent thim articles about what can happen etc., but he doesn't believe "experts". He wants proof that a coat will cause the seat to fail, as in he wants to know if anyone has done a crash test to prove it. I even showed him car seat manuals that say to avoid bulky clothing and that the seat will provide no protection if the harness is not secured properly. I have told him to go put dd in her seat without her coat after he takes her out with it on, but he won't. I really do not know what to do anymore. He says he just won't take them anywhere, but what happens if I'm at work and there is some kind of emergency??! I really need to know if there has ever beenany kind of study or crash test done about this sort of thing, otherwise I think I am up a creek without a paddle. :(
Thank you for any help you can provide.
Mary

[KHarrington]

I don't know if it would help, but one of the things we recommend to parents who continue to use bulky jackets with their carseats is the following:


Place your child (with the winter jacket) into the carseat and tighten it to what you feel is appropriate.

Without loosening the straps, unbuckle the child and remove them from the seat.

Take the coat off of the child, and place the child into the seat...note how loose the harness is...you should not be able to "pinch" the harness...


The jackets, etc compress in a crash, but if the jacket is too bulky it could allow for the child to be ejected...

Here is a quote from another CPS Tech:

"When I took my tech class we were shown a picture of an infant seat with a snowsuit under the harness," she says. "The seat was pulled out of a car that had just been in a crash. The infant was ejected from the seat and the car and was found some feet away from the car, but the snowsuit was left in the seat just as the baby was wearing it."

--Jen Ellis

[Colleen]

Do a forum search on the car seat forum page. I know theres a few threads on it about it. If you cant find them PM Scatterbunny (or papposies, sp?), she always has great advice! ;)

[lovinwaves]

ok, hmmmmmm try this.....

Bring the carseat into the house. Put your DD in it with her big bulky coat on, and strap her in. Then take her out of the seat (not adjusting the straps), take off her coat, and then reinstall her in the seat(like you said in your OP). Now have your DH pick of the seat and hold it upside down and do a spin in the living room. Would he trust that his precious cargo wouldn't fall out? There ya go...... :)

[nisi]

Well, if the car seat manual isn't good enough, I don't know what is, but the closest thing to "proof" that I have seen was a picture of a snowsiut buckled into an infant seat. The picture was taken post-crash. The baby was ejected but the snowsuit was safely restrained :( I'm pretty sure this is shown in most or all tech classes. Maybe someone here has the picture?

It is possible to keep kids both warm and safely restrained. We normally ditch the coats in the car, but it has been so bitter, frigid cold this week that we compromise. We unzip, pull the coat out of the way of the harness as much as possible (can't get it totally off the sholders if it has a hood), then buckle. Get that harness as tight as possbile so any slack due to compression of the coat in a crash will be very, very small. Then either zip it over the harness or leave it open and tuck a scarf or blanket over it. We keep a few crib-size fleece blankets in the car just for that prupose ;) Other parents will have similar methods, I'm sure.

[canadianmom2three]

Lately here I can drive for almost 1/2 hour before my car is anywhere near warm, and I just can't leave it outside warming up for that long:o so I have been doing the same for short trips, have taken all the hoods off the kids coats anyway (just end up flopping around all the time, and we use neck warmers and hats anyway)so I push the coat to the sides of the harness, and then pull the bottom out over the bottom harness...I know it is not as safe, but the windchill has been down to -30 here and it is crazy. for longer trips we still do the coat off and blanket thing, and as soon as the cold lets up just a bit, we will be back to that for all trips.