The season of chilly mornings and icy car windows is a good time to think about how to keep your little ones safe and warm when travelling in the car.

As parents we often have the instinct to wrap our children up in cosy bundles when going out in the car. However, this isn’t necessarily the right thing to do. Check out our five top tips on how to make sure your babies and toddlers are warm and cosy as well as safe when travelling.

Keep your children's car seats inside

If your car seats are removable, consider keeping them in the house overnight, so that you strap your children into warm car seats before a journey.

Don't dress your children in puffy winter coats in the car

Most winter coats have a fluffy filling designed to keep your children warm with an ‘air buffer’ between them and the coat. However, this thickness will prevent you from correctly tightening the straps around their chests. In the event of an impact, the ‘puffiness’ is released resulting in too much space behind the straps. This means your children could slip through their straps.

Use layers for warmth

Dress your child in thinner layers to keep them warm and use a blanket (or their coat) over the top of their straps to keep them cosy. You can even slide their coat on backwards over the top of the straps, to keep their arms warm.

Car seat blankets – cute and practical!

Consider using specially designed car baby blankets which work with the car seats. You can then wrap the blanket over the top of them to make a snuggly baby burrito!

Don't overdo it with the car heater

Remember not to have the car heater on too high. If your children are wearing hats and gloves on top of being wrapped up in a blanket, they'll become too hot if you have the heater on high.  It's a good idea to dress in similar layers to your child so you can match the heat to how you are feeling.