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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think 7 & 8 year olds need car seats

214 replies

justalittlelemondrizzle · 02/05/2016 23:58

My 7 & 8yo dds use booster seats in the car. Ive been shocked recently with people not bothering to use them. Dds were taken out last week by a friend. I asked if I should get the dd's seats and they said its fine as their 6yo doesn't need one anymore so my dds will be fine as theyre taller than her. Luckily dd's insisted they wanted their seats so I avoided a potentially awkward convo. I'm not one to preach to people about their parenting.
Another friend gave my eldest a lift home the other day, when she was dropped off, I went to the car and she wasn't sat on a booster and neither was her dd or 6yo son!
I took dds friend out today and she got in the back in the middle seat with no seat, I had a spare seat in the front for her and she moved but said she hadnt sat in one of these for ages.
These are all different children btw and none of them are taller than my eldest who is 125cm.
Is this the norm? Are people just not that fussed or am I OTT?

OP posts:
BombadierFritz · 03/05/2016 09:15

My older kids miss their hbb - way more comfy when you want a nap apparently

GreenMarkerPen · 03/05/2016 09:15

my tall (145cm) 9 yo is in a hbb. very comfortable. the seat goes up to 155cm.
we drive a lot in europe where the hight limit is 150 and the penalty painfully expensive.
dc will be in a hbb until they don't fit any more. it's much, much safer. just look at some of the crash test videos.

Schwabischeweihnachtskanne · 03/05/2016 09:20

Backless boosters are allowed in Germany Yep bomb - kids seem to move into them at around the size they'd stop using seats at all in the UK(135-140 cm ish). One of DD's friends had an armchair hbb til she was 150 cm (she's well built too, must have been 40kg) but she's the only child her parents need to fit intothe back and her parents had a Backless cushion for visiting children and were happy for her to use a cushion in our car. We live rurally and lift share a lot so I am quite familiar with what others do!

Schwabischeweihnachtskanne · 03/05/2016 09:24

Sorry meant to explain the older girl had an absolutely enormous hbb with arms - not any kind of standard one and took up an enormous amount of space so not an option with 3 kids! It's the only one that size I've ever seen.

treaclesoda · 03/05/2016 09:26

Green what seat do you have? I'd be interested in one if I could find one that DD fitted comfortably in.

BombadierFritz · 03/05/2016 09:29

Thanks schwab. Its all v interesting. 'Back in the day' with my eldest, car seats were a lot more basic for older kids. I've just seen one with speakers in the headrest for the ipod connection it has in the base!

Micah · 03/05/2016 09:31

Yanbu about using seats- although agree should be hbb.

However i'm not sure a booster in the front seat is safer than no booster in the back. My understanding of the statistics is tgat the back middle seat is the safest seat in the car, the passenger front the least. Especially dangerous for children if there's an airbag.

So i never allow mine in the front unless i have 4 kids. I put the tallest in the middle back with no seat (legal, if there isnt room for three seats in back), never in the front.

pratiaalba · 03/05/2016 09:37

I am 149 cm. What do I do if I wish to drive in Ireland or Germany?Confused
My children are in boosters- 7yo in HBB, 10yo normal booster, but she's over 140cm.
They moan, and say friends don't use, but I just say it's a condition of going in my car.

Original poster
justalittlelemondrizzle · 03/05/2016 09:39

Motherofdragons - but I am following guidelines and the law as they are recommended for their age. The seatbelt is correctly positioned and held secure by the arm rests so no chance of it slipping as mentioned upthread. They are comfortable and have been throughout long car journeys.

Nanna - I asked the friend who gave dd a lift if she had a spare seat. In hindsight I dont think she thought I meant carseat. English is not her first language.
I also would have definately had that potentially awkward conversation if the dd's didnt specifically ask for their seats. I am proud they did. They know their seats are important.

I only came across the new car seat law change when it was shared on fb. From what I have seen personally lately and from what others on here are saying. There needs to be a nationwide radio/tv safety campaign on using a seat for a child till theyre 135cm.
On re reading the shared article, it says we can continue to use the boosters after December as it only applies to new products sold which is completely back tracking and makes the whole new law seem a bit of a shambles before its even begun.

OP posts:
GreenMarkerPen · 03/05/2016 09:39

it's a graco seat. I think a junior maxi

treaclesoda · 03/05/2016 09:48

Thank you Green.

AnnPerkins · 03/05/2016 10:06

My DS is nearly 7yo and 133cm. He has a high backed booster seat. It will be high enough for a while yet and the seatbelt fits fine but the seat pitch is too short, causing uncomfortable pressure on the back of his thighs and making his feet go numb. I want him to stay in the hbb for as long as possible but it's not comfortable on long journeys.

We're taking our campervan to France this Summer and he will have to travel in it for hours at a time. I can't find any information about the seat pitch of hbb's online though.

Schwabischeweihnachtskanne · 03/05/2016 10:08

pratiaalba assuming you are over 12 you'd be fine :o :o It's 150cm or 12 years old - you don't have to be both over 12 and over 150cm.

Which is good because I know at least one leggy 168cm 11 year old and ironically the adult (14 years older) sister of the girl with the enormous hbb is a tiny slip of a woman in her 20s who is probably barely 150cm herself, but gets to drive without a booster :o

Eva50 · 03/05/2016 10:10

Ds3 is almost 10, 137cm and quite sturdy. We have a Rodi XP which he still fits easily and finds very comfortable.

To think 7 & 8 year olds need car seats
blaeberry · 03/05/2016 10:15

I have three high back boosters in the back of my car for three children between 123 and 132 cm (so the seats are quite extended). The seats more or less completely block my rear view when parking etc. My DH uses backless boosters in his car as the curve of the car roof means the hbb don't fit now they are so extended. I have found this a problem in other cars as well. My understanding of the importance of hbb is they hold the seat belt in the correct position over the shoulder and stop children slumping eg if they fall asleep.

Front airbags are more likely to be a problem in a hbb in the front seat than a booster as a hbb brings you forward a bit. But I can't see why a child in a booster should have their face smashed anymore than an adult would when a airbag deployed.

witsender · 03/05/2016 10:19

My nigh on 6 yr old is over the height limit, but sits in a proper seat with a harness, she turned from RF at 4 and will stay in this seat until she outgrows it.

Youngest is 4 next week and is in same seat, he turned a month or so ago.

When they outgrow them we will debate hBb. Eldest does go in a booster in grandparents' cars.

tobysmum77 · 03/05/2016 10:23

My DD is 7 and is well over 125. I don't think she'd be comfortable in a high backed booster now.

Whyever not???? They are meant for children of her age and size. I just bought a new one for my 7 year old.

OP yabu not to use a hbb. Your friends I wouldn't let my child in the car with as I'd wonder what else they were lax about.

tobysmum77 · 03/05/2016 10:25

Front airbags are more likely to be a problem in a hbb in the front seat than a booster as a hbb brings you forward a bit. But I can't see why a child in a booster should have their face smashed anymore than an adult would when a airbag deployed.

If I have to take a child in the front (rare occasions) I turn the airbag off. I don't know if this is possible in all cars though

AndNowItsSeven · 03/05/2016 10:32

Toby's mum my dd was in a high back booster until 150 cm so unless your seven year old is a giant she will be comfortable.

Micah · 03/05/2016 10:48

Front airbags are more likely to be a problem in a hbb in the front seat than a booster as a hbb brings you forward a bit. But I can't see why a child in a booster should have their face smashed anymore than an adult would when a airbag deployed

Because children's faces are directly in line, so can be suffocated and/or receive chemical burns to the face. Their relatively larger head size means they will accelerate faster toward the airbag, which is accelerating very fast in the opposite direction.

Airbags are designed with >75kg adults in mind. An adult can withstand much greater force to the chest area than a developing child with a still forming skeleton..

DragonmotherKhaleesi · 03/05/2016 10:48

The only use for a backless booster is to ensure the adult seatbelt fits the child's hips correctly. They don't even ensure the Belt rests on the shoulder correctly. They offer no other protection at all.
Your argument about using boosters is pointless as your children should also be in hbb op. Hmm

Artandco · 03/05/2016 10:49

My 120cm 6 year old son is in a Cybex solution high back booster. It's on the smallest setting and adjusts up and outwards as he grows. It's designed to up to 12 years. He has loads of space left as mentioned it's on lowest heights atm. He was in a rear faced harnessed seat until almost 5.

m.johnlewis.com/mt/www.johnlewis.com/cybex-solution-q2-fix-group-2-3-car-seat-autumn-gold/p1803455?sku=234166579&kpid=234166579&s_kenid=048f3b28-4d6c-4464-b81a-2186c7582173&s_kwcid=403x698399&tmad=c&tmcampid=73#page_loaded

The concord transformer xt also seems to do the same.

en.concord.es/products/driving/car-seats/transformer-xt/

Artandco · 03/05/2016 10:50

Micah - airbags can't be designed for above 75kg. I'm a fully grown adult who drives and I'm 50kg.

Artandco · 03/05/2016 10:51

75kg = 11.8stone. I'm sure half the adult population weighs less than that

Micah · 03/05/2016 11:04

They are tested with 75kg crash test dummies apparently. Designers assume average male weight [rolleyes]. That's just from a quick google though.

Smaller and lighter people are at more risk.