Rearfacing Car Seats for 9 months to 4 years- Please read and spread the word

[Carseatcrazy]

Please please spread the word about rear facing car seats for 9 months to 4 years.

?In Sweden between July 2006 and November 2007 not one child under the age of six was killed in a car crash. Children in Sweden sit rear facing until the age of four.

205 children under 5 are seriously injured in the UK every year and a further 21 are killed, while in cars (the AA).

Two thirds of child fatalities in the under?four age group in the UK occur in cars (the AA).?

Rear facing car seats for this age group have now been proven to be 5 TIMES SAFER than forward facing.

If this isn't enough have a look at these:

http://www.youtube.com/watch ?v=Y2DVfqFhseo&feature=fvw



The other day I walked past a mum having her car fitted outside a well known retailer, and I felt so sad for her that the staff would be giving her the standard "no seat is safer than any other", when that is total rubbish There is a vast vast difference in the safety of these seats.

I just really want to spread the word to other mums and let them see the facts for themselves. (The government and retailers are of the view that UK parents don't want to buy these seats - and therefore don't tell us about them - incidentally there are places across the country now starting to stock them...)

I've done the research, and there is no way in this world I would now get a forward facing car seat. Yes they can be slightly more pricey- but generally about the same price as the higher end forward facing ones- and to be honest, I'm of the view that if you can possibly afford it, safety is the one thing you should skimp on

Anyway, if anyone wants more info, please just give me a shout, also there is loads of great info on: www.rearfacing.co.uk

happy car seat hunting

[BoysAreLikeDogs]

Is that your website?

[CarGirl]

does it matter?

What has been said by the op is true a good retailer is this one

www.incarsafetycentre.co.uk/shop/rearward-facing-seats.html very very helpful if you ring them.

I had the 2 way elite and loved it for dd.

[BoysAreLikeDogs]

just bein nosey

[sweetnitanitro]

We want to get a rear-facing seat for DD, does anyone know if one will fit in the back of an Alfa 147 (the 5 door one), please say yes because I don't want to sell my car

A lot of people I have mentioned this too have been a bit and made me think I am being PFB.

[arcticlemming]

Try getting in touch with these guys about your Alpha Sweetnitrino
www.carseatinfo.co.uk/index.cfm?sid=19086&pid=292368&item=29819
If you're in Essex you can visit them and try out car seats. Otherwise they can give you advice over the phone. CarGirl's link is also very good if you're near Milton Keynes.
I think the safety record of rear facing is compelling, although they may not suit everyone or every car. You're certainly not being PFB to consider it.

[sweetnitanitro]

Ooh, I'm not too far from MK, I might look them up. Thanks for that!

[Carseatcrazy]

www.rearfacing.co.uk isn't my site no But it is full of fab advice and all the research - plus there is a forum on there where you could post about what other people use in certain cars to ask their advice - such as your Alfa Sweetnitanitro

I just want to spread the word out there to others - it just strikes me as crazy that all the big retailers are allowed to continue to plug car seats that the recent safety tests now tell us are not as safe as we once thought - I just think every parent should have the right to have that info before making an expensive decision

[differentWitch]

carseatcrazy- how do you know that they don't try and tell customers about rearfacing being the safest?

[hambo]

Where do their legs go?

[CarGirl]

Their legs hang over the edge like they do rear facing. If you google you can find photos of dc in rear facing.

The runners up to safest after rear facing are the seat with impact cushions rather than 5 point harness. It's do with the weight of their heads being a higher ratio than in adults so impact cushions work better because their spine bends further down so it is not just their necks taken the stain of impact.

[Carseatcrazy]

differentWitch- because every time I go into a major store- mothercare, halfords, john lewis etc and ask about it, they give me their standard speel "that all car seats have passed the ECE regulations and that they can't recommend any difference between them", and then when I ask specifically about rear facing they tell me that "no, it's fine to put your little one forward facing when they move out of their first seat" I've asked in so many stores it's depressing - I'm getting a bit obsessed about it now!!!!

Hambo - their legs have loads of room - have a look at these as an example: www.securatot.co.uk/articles.php?category_id=5 some great pictures of 3 and 4 year olds, still looking comfy and most importantly Very safe some people argue about their legs being at risk, but the research demonstrates that broken legs (as it is -very unlikely) are a whole lot easier to sort out than paralysis or death caused by internal decapitation.... sorry to sound so macarbe, but I think it's important to look at all the risks to weigh them up..... Hope the pictures help

[EldonAve]

given this is your sole posting topic you do look like you are advertising rearfacing.co.uk

[CarGirl]

Most stores don't stock rear facing til 4 car seats nor the impact cushions ones!

So many parents rush their dc out of stage 0 /0+ car seats not realising that until they are physically too tall or too heavy for them. Often it's comments like their legs are all bent up.

[Carseatcrazy]

cargirl, did you still have your TWE for sale?

[Carseatcrazy]

EldonAve - no I've nothing to do with rearfacing.co.uk apart from wanting others to spread the word. Anyhow- the site is not a money making one as far as I'm aware - it's just information giving for parents (although I guess they must get something from the two adverts on the front page)...but my posting is purely with good intention to spread the word. there are equally the other u-tube videos that i put links to, but I don't think they have the info that is so useful to others to find out where to get them etc... I searched for ages to find my ds's car seat (having made a very expensive mistake and buying a ff one that is now sitting unused in my garage), and I found this site finally put me in touch with retailers near me who could help. I just hope this discussion can help spread the word to others too

[CarGirl]

No I sold it on ebay

[SCARYspicemonster]

carseatcrazy - can you tell me how many car accidents there are in Sweden? Because those stats mean nothing without percentages.

And Sweden has a population density of 21 people per km2 vs 246 in the UK. So there are going to be less car accidents in Sweden presumably as there are rather a lot more people here than there are there ergo rather a lot more cars on the road.

[hannahsaunt]

How can I have 3 children in the back of the car each with their legs dangling over the edge of their seats???

[Carseatcrazy]

Scaryspicemonster - no, I have no idea of the detail of the stats but I'm sure the ladies who have used it on their site: www.securatot.co.uk/page.php?page=info4 would be able to help you more.

At the end of the day, you can interpret stats however you want (god knows I know that, having used them throughout my degree!), but I take the most important message from them and all the info on these sites - the test results clearly show that rf is safer

[EldonAve]

We have a rear facing 0-4 seat but switched back to FF at around 2 as it was becoming too much of a squish

I have usually seen them in Sweden in the front passenger seat - the seat is then reclined giving more room for the legs

[CarGirl]

Some of the rear facing models are much larger than the 0-4 ones, the britax 2 way elite is designed to be a stage 1 & 2 car seat so fitted a 5 point harness on a chid until 6 or 7 - 25kgs and to be used rear facing as long as possible and not used forward facing until 15kgs as a recommended minimum.

[SCARYspicemonster]

Do you know, I really don't give a stuff. I was just pointing out how absurd statements like yours are.

I work on probability. The likelihood that we're going to be involved in a really bad car accident is very small. The likelihood that it's going to be so bad that my DS, who is in a good, EU approved, age appropriate car seat, will be seriously injured in said crash, is even smaller.

He's much more likely to be killed crossing the street than he ever is in a car crash so I'll concentrate on that thanks.

[nicm]

hannahsaunt it may be possible. i can get a ff seat and 2 britax two way elites and that's in a golf. am going to try and change the ff seat to a secura hiway though. it should fit but will have to try it to make sure.

[Carseatcrazy]

Scary spicemonster - I totally understand what you're saying, and yes, it is all a matter of personal judgements and risks - risks that our little ones are faced with every day - you're right

I just want to help people to have access to the info to help them make those judgements for themselves

[thereluctantrobin]

Our 'good, EU approved, age appropriate' forward-facing car seats have never been tested in a way that takes into account the forces on the child - if they were, they would not look so good - possibly they wouldn't even look adequate. Statistics are worth taking into account, but so is physics.