Why You Should Have a Car Seat Inspection

Registering your car seat with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) makes good economic sense: it allows the agency to contact you if there are safety recall alerts or other notices. It is also simple: just fill out an easy form on the manufacturer’s website or mail in the accompanying card. If you don’t register your seat, the agency will not be notified. The best way to protect your child in a car is to make sure they ride in a car seat that has been approved by NHTSA. Otherwise they can be seriously injured in an accident.

You can do this yourself without getting help from anyone. First, read the labels on all the straps of a backless booster seat. Most are made of a material that moves forward and back along the same axis, so that no two positions can be changed without compromising balance. These seats can be a great help for small children who are able to manipulate their chairs well enough to get help from someone but need a little bit of help for the rest.

The next step is to examine the harnesses and straps of all safety seats. Again, this is an area where most are created as well, but there are some models that use poor materials that may not be as safe. Look at the strength of fasteners like fasteners behind the headrest and the anchors in the back seat. Make sure the fasteners are made of good-quality metal because they will be used to hold the child up. Also, inspect the safety belts and buckles for wear and tear. Make sure the air bags deployed are effective and will work when required.

Next look at the weight limits of the seats. Some have only a weight limit of twenty pounds, while others allow much more, especially for kids who are two or three years old. For booster seats, the weight limit will be determined by the chair’s design. If you choose a chair that offers a seat belt only, make sure that it is equipped with a forward-facing child seat with a five-point harness.

After checking all areas of quality, check the car seat for defects. A good inspection station will inspect the chair for visible cracks, tears, breaks, punctures, and missing parts. If there are visible defects, the Consumer Product Safety Commission will notify the manufacturer immediately.

Inspections of booster and forward-facing seats should include visual and/or audible warning indicators. In addition, the seat’s mechanism should indicate whether the system is automatic manual or both. It should indicate what control functions it is used with so you know what to do if there is a problem. Finally, check that the harness fits properly and has been designed to protect your child.