to think it should be easy to find out which high back booster seats are safest?

[m0therofdragons]

I have 3 dc, dd1 is in a booster (maxi cosi rodi air protect) and dtds are ready for boosters too. I was planning on the same as dd1 or the Isofix version. Today in halfords I was told they couldn't say which is safest but he did say Isofix isn't ideal for boosters as the weight of the child combines with the seat to get a strong reaction from the seat belt to hold the child back. With Isofix it's just the weight of the child so the belt reaction isn't as good (he worded that better and seemed to make sense).
I've always thought maxi cosi or britax are the safest. Then I've seen a britax one in the sale for 35 pounds rather than 100 for the maxi cosi. Obviously when buying 2 that's a huge difference but I don't want to save money but risk dtds lives. Arrrgh it's so confusing, I just want to keep my dc as safe as possible!

I don't think the Britax adventure is very good, britax kidfix (I think that's the name!) scored better when I bought my last high backs last year, I did all the Which research at the time.

How old are they btw?

There's a thread in Car Seats right now which is talking about this very topic. Which would also be a more appropriate place for this post, TBH.

You can look at the Which? reports in your local library, or pay to view them online.

Halfords won't be able to tell you of course, because there is no objective measure of "the safest". The Which? tests will tell you how they performed under their specific safety testing, and of course any seat on sale will have to have been tested to legal standards. Obviously that's a minimum and some will have higher protection than others. But there is no NCAP-style rating.

I have a Britax Adventure and find it great but Which only scored it 42%. Personally I think that you can overthink car seats. The most important thing is that they are in one which is appropriate for their size and weight. I wouldn't use nania seats, but I'm happy with the Adventure.

HBBs aren't very heavy, TBH I wouldn't have thought it would make much difference. ISOfix stops the seat from coming out of place or flying around in the event of an accident where the child isn't in the seat, with a non isofix seat you should always strap the seat in even when it's empty.

If you want to keep them as safe as possible, then you could always buy extended rear facing, 5-point-harness seats, there are some which go up to 25kg.

Which? tests them in a forward crash, as per the official standard, and a side crash - which isn't in the standard.

Oooh I'll look on the car seat thread. I posted here more about my annoyance. I don't think you should have to pay to find out which car seat is safe. Didn't realise the library have them but then not sure I'd be able to look with twins with me. They are 3 and will be in their current seats for a few months more but are getting tall for them. We need spare seats for dh's car for a short journey twice a week and they are over 18 so makes sense to get boosters.

Can't fit 3 car seats along the back of my car if two are rear facing.

I don't think there is any such thing as one brand being generally safer than another. It's a bit more involved than that.

Safety is without a doubt the most important thing (ok, alongside usability. Car seats are one of the few things I refuse to economise on, especially as we do a lot of motorway miles. My friend was in a smash on the M25 a little while ago, with her 3yo son in the back - the crash was only at 25mph yet the car was pretty much totaled. Thankfully there were only minor injuries all round, but it could easily have been a lot worse.

Read the Which? reports, there's a vast amount of difference in how different seats perform in the crash tests. It costs a pound to sign up for a month's access online. Well worth it if you're considering a big purchase imo.

This page explains how the which tests differ from the legally required crash tests.

www.which.co.uk/baby-and-child/baby-transport/guides/how-we-test-child-car-seats/

I think Halfords regularly scores badly for car seat and fitting advice when tested by Which?. The independents score much better.

I also think he was talking bollocks.

Which? scored the Kiddy car seats high which is what we have.

We were members of Which? when choosing car seats. I'm borderline fanatical about car safety, especially for young children, and their testing and reviews are really comprehensive. It's worth joining just to make this important choice.

The halfords chap was talking crap. On that basis, the heavier you are, the better you should fare in a crash.
Isofix just ensures the seat is correctly fastened and becomes part of the chassis whereas belted in is a weight added to the weight if the child and then tensioned against the belt in a crash.
Besafe do extended rearfacing seats, and they also do forward facing isofix seats which flick sideways in the event of a side impact.

< geek >