For years now, safety experts have recommended kids ride in a car seat without wearing winter coats.
“So, what happens in a crash is all that material that’s in the snowsuit or a winter jacket will compress,” said Lisa Klindt Simpson with Safe Kids Southeast Wisconsin.
Klindt Simpson works with Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin teaching parents about car seat safety.
Using a baby doll dressed in a snowsuit, she demonstrated how the snowsuit adds several inches of bulk and can leave your child too loosely harnessed.
It’s not against the law to have a child wear a winter coat while strapped into a car seat, and despite the safety recommendation, not everyone follows the recommendation.
Jake and Katie Winters explain they want to keep their nearly 4-year-old son, Owen, comfortable when the temperatures drop.
“He’s one of those kids who just doesn’t like to be cold,” said Jake.
“I do feel that he’s safe, it’s more about him being comfortable and not being cold,” said Katie.
Lisa Klindt Simpson suggests warming up the car or putting the child’s coat over them like a blanket.
Do you take your child’s winter coat off before strapping them into a car seat? Weigh in on TODAY’S TMJ4 poll:
Parents: do you take your child’s winter coat off before strapping them in the car seat? @tmj4
— Kristin Byrne (@Kristin_Byrne) November 12, 2018
