Highways and Public Works

Department Overview

Your car seat and a collision

How your car seat works in a crash

Rear-facing car seats with a harness system

At the moment of a frontal colllision or even a sudden stop, momentum carries the vehicle, anyone and anything on board towrad the point of impact. For an infant, whose neck and back muscles are not yet developed, and whose head is disproportionately large and heavey, the impact of a sudden stop or collision could be catatrophic if they were restrained in a forward-facing position. This is because the head would be propelled towards the point of impact in a frontal collision resulting in injury to the spinal cord and brain stem. In a rear-facing seat, the shock of the impact is transferred along the length of the restratin back support, and spread across teh infant's back, neck and head, protecting the infant.

The effectiveness of the restraint is dependent upon the appropiateness to the child, securing the child properly in the car seat and the car seat being correctly installed in the vehicle.

Forward-Facing car seats with harness system

The harness system of a forward-facing restraint system spreads the forces of a crash over the body structure. A child's skeletal system cannot withstand the concentrated forces exhibited by just a seat belt assemly alone. In addition, the crotch strap keeps the child in place and prevents submarining or slipping out of the harnness and getting ejected from your vehicle.

The effectiveness of the restraint is dependent upon the appropiateness to the child, securing the child properly in the car seat and the car seat being correctly installed in the vehicle.

Therefore, the longer you can keep them in a harness system the safer they will become. There are car seats on the market that will accommedate a child up to 65lbs with a harness system. (Please ensure that you are buying from a Canadian Company)

Booster seats with a lap/shoulder belt

Booster seats correct the lap and shoulder belt fit. The use of the booster seat helps to avoid injuries to the lower spine, and to the abdominal organs. These injuries occur when the lap belt is up on the abdomen instead of on the hip bones. Booster seats are designed for children weighing over 40lbs. (Our legislation states your child must be 48lbs before using a booster seat, but please remember that your child is safer in a harness system than just a seat belt/booster seat combination)

At the moment of a frontal colllision or even a sudden stop, momentum carries the vehicle, anyone and anything on board towrad the point of impact. A booster seat positions the child so that the seat belt fits the child correctly. This permits the forces of an impact to be distributed by the seat belt webbing ocer the strongest aresa of a child's body, the pelvis and the chest. The booster seat alloes the child to sit high enough for the lap portion of the belt to ride low and snugly across the hips, and the shoulder belt to be placed across the child's mid-chest and shoulder. The booster seat also prevents the child from slouching, which leads to the lap belt riding high on the abdomen by allowing the legs to fold over the seat naturally.

If the lap belt or the lap portion of a lap/shoulder belts fits high over the child's abdomen it could result in abdominal and spinal injuries in the event o fa collision. In the event of a crash, a lap belt placed over the sbdomen would not have any solid bony structure to absorb the crash forces. The belt would move through the soft abdominal areas damaging the internal organs until it would come in contact with the spinal column. If the crash is severe enough the spinal cord could be bruised or severed which could lead to paraplegia. The effectiveness of the restraint is dependent upon the appropriateness to the child and being properly installed in the vehicle.

If the mid point of your child's ears are above; the back of the seat, or the top of the head rest, or the top of the car seat, they could suffer from neck injuries in the event of a collision.

***Warnings***

The shoulder belt should NEVER be placed under the arm of any occupant. In the event of a collision, this can lead to one of the heart's main blood vessels being severed, and/or puncturing of the lungs. This can cause major interal bleeding leading to death.

The shoulder belt should NEVER be placed behind the back of any occupant. This negates upper torso protection by allowing the head an dupper body to violently pitch forward in the event of a collision.

Seat Belts

At the moment of a frontal colllision or even a sudden stop, momentum carries the vehicle, anyone and anything on board toward the point of impact. The seat belt is designed to hold in place the body of a person whose size is greater thean the height and weight limit of booster seats. Their bodies, particularly their skeletal systems, are more developed, so that the impant is concentrated on the shoulder and lap belt, then distributed across the body. The seat belt assembaly is designed to distribute the forces of a crash over the strongest areas of the body. The lap belt, if worn correctly, distributes the forces over the boney structure of the pelvis. The shoullder belt, if available and worn correctly, holds the torso in position and distributes the forces of the collision across the chest.

The effectiveness of the restraint is dependent upon the appropiateness to the child, securing the child properly in the car seat and the car seat being correctly installed in the vehicle.

Add-on seat belt adjusters are not recommended as they use the lap belt to adjust the shoulder belt. By pulling down on the shoulder belt, the lap belt is pulled up. This may cause the lap belt to ride up and could cause severe interal and spinal cord injuries.

***Warnings***