Are Bundled-Up Kids Safe in a Child Car Seat? Maybe Not. How to Stay Safe and Cozy in Cold Weather

Some jackets may not have a detrimental effect on safety, others will. There’s an easy process to follow in order to tell:

• Put your child in her coat and fasten her into her car seat. Tighten the harness until the straps are no longer slack enough for you to pinch it between your thumb and forefinger.
• Remove your child from her seat without loosening the harness.
• Remove your child’s coat, then place her back in her seat and fasten the straps.
• If you can now pinch a strap between your thumb and forefinger, the jacket is too bulky for your child to safely wear in the car. On the other hand, if the straps are still so snug that you can’t pinch the strap, that item of clothing can be worn safely.

Those rules go for anything your child might be wearing, whether it’s a costume, a sweater, a blanket—anything that has layers of loft.

Read: The Ultimate Car Seat Challenge: Which Mid-Size 3-Row SUVs Fit Child Car Seats the Best?

A few strategic layers can work wonders without necessitating a big coat inside the car. The main thing to note here is that those layers should be thin and snug: If the layers fit close to your child’s body, they won’t obstruct the functionality of the seatbelts. Hats and gloves are great ways to retain warmth, too.

A good rule of thumb is that infants and young children should be wearing one more layer of clothing than the adults around them. So, if you’re wearing a hat and coat, your baby will need a hat, coat, and blanket.

Read: Which 2 Row SUVs Are Best For Child Car Seats? The Ultimate Car Seat Challenge

Despite the fact that all her children are grown, my mom is still a staunch advocate for the in-car blanket. It’s a great item to have in the event of an emergency, but it’s also a safe way to cover your kids up in their car seat. Just don’t tuck the blanket underneath them or in between your child and the seat; you don’t want the blanket to interfere with seat security in any way.

Older children can use their coats to the same effect. Take the coat off before securing them in their car seat, then give them their coat to put on backwards in order to cover their arms and chest.

And, nowadays, they sell blankets with arm holes that are perfect for this purpose.

Yes, it might be a pain to put a carseat into your car every time you need to drive, but in the winter, it might be worth it—especially for infants and children who aren’t able to use their words yet. With so many quick-install seats on the market and drop-in baby carriers, this can be an option on a bitter cold day.

And, a cold car seat can sap the heat right out of your kiddo but it can take a while to warm up in a cold car. Bringing the seat—and any blankets or winter wear—inside can make life much more comfortable.

While there are tons of different aftermarket products available that are designed to keep your children warm, you want to avoid anything that’s not approved by your car seat manufacturer. These generally aren’t tested in crash tests, so they aren’t certified to keep your kids safe. If you use one of those products and your child suffers an injury, you won’t be able to demand compensation.

That being said, most car seat makers have a list of certified products that you can use with your seat if you need it.

I grew up in a rural area where it’s still very common for people to wrap their kids up in coats and snowpants before clipping them into their car seat. The argument they pose tends to be: If we get in a crash, no one will be close enough to rescue us, so my child will get hypothermia if we have to sit there for a while.

You can still ensure your child is warm and comfortable without their bulkiest coat—which will still be on hand in the car in the event of an emergency. The first goal in an accident is for everyone to survive the crash. Then you can worry about getting help and staying warm—which shouldn’t be a problem if you have a well-equipped winter emergency kit.