Why winter jackets can compromise child safety in car seats

With winter approaching, parents are being urged to reconsider what their children wear in the car - especially when it comes to bulky jackets.

According to 1st for Women Insurance, strapping a child into a car seat while wearing a thick jacket can compromise their safety in the event of a crash.

"Bulky jackets create the illusion that your child is safely buckled into their car seat when in fact the opposite is true," said Seugnette van Wyngaard, Head of 1st for Women Insurance. "If you tighten your child’s harness around a thick jacket, that jacket will compress during an accident, making the harness loose and leading to an increased risk of injury."

The warning comes amid growing concern over car seat usage in South Africa. The National Road Traffic Act requires that children under the age of three be secured in a car seat, while those aged three to 14, or under 1.5 metres tall, must be restrained if a car seat is available. Yet, the Automobile Association (AA) estimates that one in three children still travels without one.

Research shows that proper use of car seats significantly improves outcomes in crashes. For children aged 0 to four years, correct installation and use of car seats can reduce the need for hospitalisation after a crash by 69%.

To ensure safety in winter, 1st for Women Insurance recommends dressing children in what they would normally wear indoors before buckling them in. If extra warmth is needed, a jacket can be placed over the child like a blanket after they are secured.

Other tips include:

• Using the “pinch test” to check harness tightness: After buckling the child with their jacket on, remove the jacket and rebuckle without adjusting the harness. If you can pinch the harness strap at the shoulder, it's too loose.

• Never placing items between the child and the harness or under them in the seat.

• Ensuring straps are flat and not twisted.

• Avoiding second-hand car seats unless the full history is known.

• Choosing a seat that suits the child’s weight and securing it correctly.

• Always setting an example by wearing a seatbelt.

Van Wyngaard also cautioned against the common belief that holding a child in your arms during a drive is safe. "Passengers have less than half a second to react in a collision or sudden stop—it’s unlikely an adult can hold onto a child during this time."

The key takeaway: proper restraint in the right seat, worn correctly, is critical—and what a child wears in that seat can make all the difference.