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In this article we’re going to take a look at travelling long distances with your newborn and how often they should take a break from the car seat.
Regular breaks on long journeys are essential not only for your little one’s comfort, but also for the driver to be refreshed and alert.
There is very little research on how long newborns can stay in their car seat. As a general rule, newborns should take a break from their car seat every 2 hours.
You may be told that newborns must spend no longer than 30 minutes in their car seat, this comes from a pilot study conducted by the University of Bristol in 2016 to assess the usefulness of the ‘car seat challenge’ on babies being discharged from NICU. The study concluded that more research is needed in this area. The “30-minute rule” has come from the duration of the test used in the study.
It is important to remember that the 30 minute ‘rule’ or 2 hour ‘rule’ is simply guidance, and minimal research has been conducted – what has been done has only included pre-term and newborn babies.
You don’t have to stop every 30 minutes; however, it is worth taking regular breaks. Driving will be riskier with a newborn if the driver is tired from sleep deprivation, and little one will need feeds, nappy changes and cuddles regularly. Two hours is fairly unachievable with a newborn!
If your little one is a low birth weight, premature or has medical conditions, avoid using the car seat on the pram until little one is bigger.
Keep car journeys to a minimum where you can, only using the car seat in the car.
Once little one can hold their head up, 2 hours is given as guidance for time in the car seat. This is the maximum recommended driving time from RoSPA Motorway Driving.
Your child must always be in a car seat when travelling in the car – this is a legal requirement, regardless of length of time.
Little one is best laying on their back, on a firm, flat surface. Being able to connect your car seat to the pram chassis is convenient, but is best kept for short, quick trips. If you’re heading out for the day, baby will be more comfortable transferred to the carrycot or lie flat pushchair seat.
There is no research or guidance on the length of time baby has a break from the seat, but they do need to be able to stretch and move around freely, you will also want to top up on lots of snuggles with little one! Once you add in a feed and change, you’re easily coming up to 30 minutes.
The Highway Code recommends drivers stop for at least 15 minutes every 2 hours little one will likely need longer.
Babies need to travel in a car seat whenever they are in the car, this is a legal requirement and the frequency of journeys undertaken has no impact on this.
If you are making lots of journeys by car, keep the car seat for car journeys only, and always transfer baby to the pushchair’s carrycot or lie flat seat unit when you get to your destination. This is good practice even when you don’t make many journeys by car.
Car seats are not safe sleep environments – if little one is snoozing when you get home, it is best to transfer them out of the car seat.
If baby falls asleep on your journey, keep the two-hour recommendation in mind and keep an eye on them during the drive. Either have another person in the back with them or use a large baby mirror to keep an eye on them.
Although the ‘rules’ on time spent in car seats are only guidance, the two-hour rule is important to follow – although not for the reason you may think!
When on long journeys, the driver should take a break every 2 hours. Research has shown that tired drivers account for 10-20% of collisions add in the pressure of driving with a precious newborn and sleep deprivation, concentration can quickly wane.
Here are our tips for making sure little one is well positioned in the car seat:
We currently have two car seats suitable for use from birth, Dream i-Size and Motion 2 All Size 360.
Dream i-Size is perfect for newborns with soft padded fabrics and supportive inserts. If your little one is prone to head flop, you can remove the head hugger from birth if needed to encourage their head to stay back. Dream i-Size is easily portable and a doddle to clip on and off the base – perfect for short, quick trips.
If you’re looking for an all-stage design, Motion 2 All Size is the only car seat you need. Approved for use from birth, it reclines and grows with little one – right up to 12 years old! Bamboo fabrics cocoon little one, and the 360° rotation makes buckling up fuss free.
Kat Gemmell joined our car safety team with over a decade of experience supporting parents to choose, fit and use their child car seats safely. She has worked for a national child seat campaign, provided product training for child seat manufacturers, and ran online information websites to support parents in making a truly informed choice. As well as her background in car safety, Kat also spent many years as a breastfeeding peer supporter, having worked for a local feeding charity as well as the maternity ward her children were born in.
