The Risk Posed When Your Child Wears a Winter Jacket While Riding in Their Car Seat

For some states, winter has taken its time to arrive, while others are experiencing an increased amount of snowfall. Snow is not the only factor that would require you and your loved ones to wear a nice, warm winter jacket, but that chilly weather with a high wind blow too. Every parent knows that when it is time to go out for a ride in their vehicle, and the temperatures are a whopping 34 degrees, they want their children bundled up, and keeping warm. What if our Madison, Wisconsin car accident attorneys could provide you with some insightful information regarding your infant, their puffy winter jacket, and their car seat? After all, your child’s safety, especially in a car, is most important right?

One of the most important things during winter is to be sure you and your children are properly dressed and kept warm to avoid any illness. But what is the link between wearing a heavy winter jacket and riding in a children’s safety restraint seat? According to NBC News, this safety restraint seat seems to be doing just the opposite of “restraining” your child, rather is causing them to fly forward, and even out of their seat completely in the event you end up in a car accident.

The shocking videos provided on the NBC News site revealed how dangerous, and deadly it is to place a small child in their car seat with their puffy winter jacket still on. The test involved a child dummy, which was wearing a large winter jacket, and was placed inside a child safety restraint seat. Because the jacket requires more room, the straps were loosened to assure they were not pressing tightly against the child. Well, here is what the test crash revealed as the test vehicle traveled at 30 mph. Shockingly, the dummy child not only came out of the car seat, but also came out of the jacket due to the collision.

Let’s take this hypothetical situation and make it real. Picture an infant or toddler who is riding in their car seat, and is involved in an automobile accident while wearing their jacket. Chances are, they will sustain such severe injuries which could ultimately change their life where they may never be the same, or worse-die instantly from the accident. Just imagine the damage that could be done had the automobile been traveling at a faster rate such as 50-60 mph, which is generally the rate of speed we drive on the highway.

This winter, our Madison, Wisconsin car crash lawyers ask you to stay safe, take precaution, and be sure if you are a parent, that your child is properly strapped in their seat, without their winter jacket, and the straps are pulled tight enough to avoid them from flying out. An accident can occur within seconds, and there is not time to right what is wrong after the fact. If you have found yourself in a car collision and are in need of an exceptional Madison car accident legal representative, we are only one phone call away.