If you’re a parent, it’s the most important safety feature you can have in your vehicle: a car seat.

Toronto Police want to make sure your precious cargo remains safe every time you go out for a drive and they’re holding a number of safety sessions across the G.T.A. to make sure your youngster is protected and secure in the car.

On Friday officers were at Fairview Mall showing parents how to install the devices correctly. When checking the car seats, one of the first things they’re looking for in forward facing contraptions is that they don’t slide from side to side more than an inch.

The same goes for rear facing car seats. To make sure there’s no wiggle room, police recommend placing a piece of foam, like a pool noodle, to help raise the device up to create a 45 degree angle – you can also use a rolled up bath towel.

Because most seating in cars is designed for adults, the back of the seat slopes down. So you can use the foam, or towel, and stuff it in that space to lift your child’s car seat to the optimum angle.

One of the big mistakes parents make is not tightening the seat belt harness enough that holds the device in place. And make sure your little one is seated away from all active air bags.

Vehicle collisions are the number one cause of death and injury for children over the age of one and using a car seat will reduce your youngster’s risk of harm in a crash by 75 per cent. It's estimated about 80 per cent of the devices are installed incorrectly.