Car seat safety

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The following tips are courtesy of Celeste Donkersgoed, public relations specialist at The Co-operators Group and Toronto police Const. Steve Burns of traffic services.

• Purchase a car seat that fits your car and baby properly.

• If the car seat is not securely attached (the seat moves no more than an inch side to side), then it's not a proper fit and you must buy another.

• Follow the weight and height restrictions that are posted on your seat and follow your manual and its guidelines.

• Car seat clinics are useful for those who want help installing their car seat or who want to see if they have their car seat properly installed. For information on the next traffic services car seat clinic, call your local police station.

• Clinics are also great because parents get a visual demonstration.

• Visit a car seat clinic when you are pregnant.

• There is an $85 fine and you earn two demerit points for not having your car seat properly installed or if your child in not in the seat or booster chair.

• By law, your child has to be in a booster seat until one of three things happen: their eighth birthday, they reach 80 pounds or are 145 centimetres. But use common sense. If a child is nine and still not 80 pounds, keep him in the booster seat. Ontario's booster seat legislation became law in the fall of 2005.

• Once you get your car seat properly installed, you have to continually check it to see if it's tight. Bumps and train tracks loosen the seat.

• If you have a rear-facing seat, there are angles you have to be aware of. A 45-degree angle is ideal because if the seat is too upright, a child's head, especially that of a newborn, can dangle forward or cut off airflow. This is especially important if they fall asleep in the car.