Is it dangerous to have twisted car seat straps?

They might keep our children safe on the road, but most parents can probably agree car seats can be a hassle.

From installing them to ensuring they remain properly fitted and compliant, not to mention keeping them clean and trying to get your kids to sit still, car seats might feel like the bane of your daily existence.

RELATED: "I install child seats for a living – these cars make my job easy"

One issue that consistently arises for parents, no matter how hard they may try, is twisted car seat shoulder straps and top-tether straps.

A twisted car seat strap can be annoying, but is it dangerous? We asked the experts.

Yes, twisted car seat shoulder straps can be unsafe in the event of a car accident.

"A flat shoulder strap spreads the load of an accident evenly across the point of contact with your child. This reduces the forces applied to their shoulders and chest," Australian car seat manufacturer InfaGroup advises on its website.

"A twisted shoulder strap concentrates those forces over a smaller area. This increases the stress applied to your child’s shoulders and chest, which can cause injury. Think about how painful a heavy plastic shopping bag can be on your hand – it's the same kind of thing."

QUIZ: What kind of family car should you buy?

Yes, an overly twisted top-tether strap can reduce its restraint performance in the event of an accident.

"It’s important that the top-tether strap has as many twists as possible removed before attaching it to the correct child car restraint anchorage point in a vehicle," Kathy Taylor, Child Car Restraints General Manager at KidSafe Victoria, tells Drive.

"It is recommended to have no twists/all unnecessary twists removed from a top-tether strap. If you are having difficulty removing twists, you can visit a professional child car restraint fitter for expert assistance and advice."

The top-tether strap is designed to reduce the forward movement of the child and their car seat in the event of a collision.

"If there are twists in the tether strap, the child car restraint may not work as intended in the event of a crash, and as a result, increase the risk of serious injury to the child," Ms Taylor says.

For further clarity, Drive provided Ms Taylor with an image of three different car seat top-tether straps to see which ones were properly installed.

"The child car restraint in the centre seating position has used the top-tether strap correctly," Ms Taylor says.

"The child car restraint on the left side of the vehicle has far too many twists, and the top tether of the child car restraint on the right-hand side is not only too loose, but it also has a twist in the tether that could easily be removed."

"The top tether/upper anchorage strap should be taut (like a guitar string), but not over-tight. If the top tether is over-tight, this can cause the child's car restraint to lift off the vehicle seat," Ms Taylor explains.

"When tightening a top-tether strap, remember to secure the loose end of the tether to prevent it hanging out of the vehicle or being accessible to a child. If available, use the top-tether storage pocket on your child's car restraint."

A quick search on YouTube or TikTok will return plenty of results for videos on how to untwist car seat straps.

One of the easiest and most popular methods for taking twists out of car seat shoulder straps is called the 'triangle method'.

The triangle method involves moving the buckle to the bottom of the strap, then folding the strap into a triangle shape and sliding the buckle back over the triangle.

You can see the method explained in the video below:

When in doubt, go to a professional car seat installer and they will be able to remove any twists for you.

InfaSecure also advises parents to minimise the risk of twists developing by doing the following on a daily basis: