Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To buy a bog standard car seat...

109 replies

Lalalax3 · 15/05/2016 19:11

... for (huge) 20 mth old son? I got a £40 Halfords essentials job and am feeling deeply guilty that we don't have a £300 extended rear facing thing like a lot of DS's contemporaries do.

He doesn't want to rear face - HATES it, and I really couldn't see how a £150 Britax was any safer than the one I chose.

So AIBU? Do I take it back and buy something better? Surely they're all as safe as each other, right?!

OP posts:
SnuffleGruntSnorter · 15/05/2016 20:39

What about the everystage? It's about £200 I know the price is not ideal but it transforms into a high back booster so you won't have to buy another seat

crumblybiscuits · 15/05/2016 20:44

YABU.
I will never understand why people skimp on car seats. Rear facing has been proven to be much safer.

Chippednailvarnishing · 15/05/2016 20:50

You've posted before about wanting to spend £3k on a car, but you can't afford £150 for a car seat. Okay then Hmm

Luckystar1 · 15/05/2016 20:52

I'm surprised that people are ff. Almost everyone I know has an erf seat for their DC. It doesn't make any sense to me to buy cheap. Skimp on something else, get a decent seat please!

AndNowItsSeven · 15/05/2016 20:55

If you can afford a cleaner and a trip to California for a wedding you can afford a decent car seat op.

mirime · 15/05/2016 21:26

We got a Britax for about £80 on offer. We'd got a bog standard Mothercare one but a bit fell off before we'd even put it in the car! I'd wanted a rear facing one anyway so took the faulty one back and swapped it for the Britax.

Not that we used it rear facing for long, DS is very tall for his age, always has been - measured long on the scans when I was pregnant. Still, it was worth it as we had some 4hr journeys to visit the in laws during that time and I was much happier having him rear facing for them.

peggyundercrackers · 15/05/2016 21:31

Rose a baby can legally go into a ff they reach 9kg, if they reach 9kg before they get to 1yr old then yes it's fine for them to do that.

peggyundercrackers · 15/05/2016 21:43

Salene I believe the system you are speaking about is the i-size system. There is no date currently set in which this will be the only law car seat law to be enforced.

Beth2511 · 15/05/2016 21:52

i had one of the cheap car seats that have just been recalled, it was all i could afford at the time. it scared the life of me when the shop assistant said they were as good as useless because they were cracking on impacts and providing more damage than protection. My pride and joy who I spend all day every day had used hers routinely for a year and it could easily have killed her.

Luckily this time round we can afford a good, maxi-cosi well tested seat and I am guaranteeting that our soon to be born DS will always always have good car seats even if I have to start saving now!

Crazypetlady · 15/05/2016 22:39

Mama joie is extended rear facing we just paid 135 pound from mamas and papas as there was a 15% discount code on the page we couldnt really afford it but my sons safety is paramount,

Iggi999 · 15/05/2016 22:41

Peggy, legal and fine are not the same however.

NeedsAsockamnesty · 15/05/2016 22:46

It is a fact of life that you can only purchase what you can afford.

Be that a car seat or a type of sausage the same thing will apply

gunting · 15/05/2016 22:51

Yabu.

OwlinaTree · 15/05/2016 22:52

We've got a rear facing seat, it's ISO fix and certainly wasn't £300! I can't remember the make, I'll have a look tomorrow.

LarrytheCucumber · 15/05/2016 22:56

Joie perhaps?

OhGodWhatTheHellNow · 15/05/2016 23:01

My 7 yo got flack from a (younger!) Schoolmate for being in a 'babyseat' - a normal high back booster ffs. I've had to politely ask this child to wind her neck in without pointing out that her parent's have so little concern for her safety she isn't even sat on a bloody cushion. I think you should get the best you can reasonably afford.
As an aside, I have a basement full of outgrown seats (well, two) what are you supposed to do with them?

LarrytheCucumber · 15/05/2016 23:04

According to a previous thread cut the straps and take them to the tip.

Idliketobeabutterfly · 15/05/2016 23:13

Can you not do a best price search for a more expensive seat... Britain is always on offer

Idliketobeabutterfly · 15/05/2016 23:14

Britax lol

OhGodWhatTheHellNow · 15/05/2016 23:19

It just seems such a waste, they were never crashed and I have no one to pass them onto. I will have to bite the bullet.

PurpleRainDiamondsandPearls · 15/05/2016 23:31

I agree with the comment about car safety too. It isn't often mentioned when discussing car (seat) safety. It's all very well having an excellent car seat but if your car is going to crumple upon impact, you're up shit creek without a paddle. You need a decent car seat and a car with a top NCAP rating.

FeckOfffCup · 15/05/2016 23:32

I think car seats are one of the things worth spending a bit more on tbh because they can make the difference between your baby living and dying in the event of a crash. I was tempted to just buy a cheap car seat until I did a bit of research, I ended up getting the Britax Two Way Elite from the In Car Safety Centre - they are great. They have a good range of ERF seats and not bad prices IMO
http://incarsafetycentre.co.uk/carseats-accessories/

Everyone I know used FF and thinks I'm a bit mad but I don't care!

NewBallsPlease00 · 15/05/2016 23:35

It's simple to me; you spend the most you can afford on a car seat, and everything else is fine basic
For us that's Isofix premium branded car seats and IKEA antlop £12 high chairs, £49 asda cot, second have clothes etc
Having seen my friends Audi (solid brand new) rammed in a nasty crash by a Lorry... Her baby was totally fine- she got whiplash
Erf wasn't a thing for my older child, but biw I know about it we will for this one: however needing 2 seats 😲- I'm assuming the more 'normal' it becomes the lower the cost...

gunting · 16/05/2016 07:43

Also rear facing over front facing could be the difference between a broken spine or a broken leg - which would you rather?

escapedfrommordor · 16/05/2016 08:18

YABU assuming it's just as safe having done no research. It's not.