When you’re rushing around trying get your screaming toddler into a car seat, it’s easy to forget to double check their seatbelt and ensure it’s tight enough.
But this five second hack can save lives and should be used for short and long car journeys for babies and toddlers, according to child safety experts.
CPR Kids is a team of paediatric nurses who post information on social media to help parents and in a recent video they highlighted the importance of a secure car seat belt – and shared an easy way to check that is indeed tight enough.
Dubbing the hack ‘the seatbelt pinch test’, the pros demonstrated a quick lifesaving test to ensure your child is actually secure when strapped in.
Under the video it said: “Here is one of our all-time favourite car seat safety tips... The seatbelt pinch test!
“If you can pinch the seatbelt material, it is not tight enough. If you are unable to pinch the seatbelt material, it is perfect! It is a quick and easy way to tell whether your little one’s seatbelt is too loose or just right.
“This isn’t just a potential lifesaving tip for any school holiday road-tripping plans but for every car trip,” they explained.
According to UK law, children must usually use a car seat until they age of 12 or 135 centimetres tall, whichever comes first.
The only time a child aged three or older can travel in a back seat without a child car seat and without a seat belt is if the car does not have one.
Alongside this if the child is in a taxi, minicab, coach or van they do not require a car seat.
And if the child is under the age of three in a taxi, they should not wear a seatbelt.