AIBU to say the new booster seat law totally confuses me?

[CharlieDimmocksbosoms]

Just that really. I know from April the law changes on what age/weight/height child can use a booster seat but can someone clearly explain it for me please?

[Artandco]

I think it's 18kg for harness to need to be taken out and main seatbelt used

[Spikeyball]

18kg

[Oriunda]

Sorrel yes - it's got a feature where the head rest tilts back. It's an excellent seat. We use a (non isofix) one abroad in relatives' cars too. Son always sleeps very comfortably in it.

[sashh]

Werkzallhourz

Me too, but when I was learning to drive and used a cushion I did wonder why they didn't make adult booster seats.

[BertieBotts]

It depends on the seat but assuming you're talking about a group 1-2-3 seat with harness which converts to a booster, the harness usually covers group 1 only, which as others said, goes up to 18kg. Should be stated in your manual too?

Normally the child gets too tall for the harness before outgrowing it in weight. With a forward facing seat the harness needs to come from above or level with the shoulders.

[alwaysthepessimist]

Currently booster cushions fall under the Group 2/3 car seat category, meaning they can be used from around 4-years-old. The new extension recommends children use backless boosters once they are 125cm or taller, which is roughly about 7-years-old.

When is this happening?
From January 2017 manufacturers will no longer make boosters cushions for smaller children, only the backless boosters for kids over 125cm tall.

It’s also worth noting that this change will apply to new products, not child restraint systems which are already in use and meet existing safety standards.

That means you won’t need to buy a new booster seat to meet any rule change, and if you use older booster seats that comply with the existing regulations you will not be breaking the law if you continue to use them after any rule change.

[alwaysthepessimist]

so the above is what I took off a website...now my 4 yo takes after my DH and is already 123cm tall...so could I really put her into a backless booster once she reaches 125cm even if she is only 5?

[Braceybracegirl]

My daughter is almost 10 and is about 123cm tall so am I meant to buy a high backed booster for her?

[PickAChew]

DS1 used a backless booster past 135cm. He was fine in a family member's Corsa, but the seatbelts in the back of our car come from much higher and didn't fit him properly.

The only safe use for backless boosters is for kids who no longer fit in a high backed booster - either too tall or their shoulders are too wide to be able to sit back properly (meeting other requirements, obviously), but who do not fit the seatbelts in your car. At 137cm, if DS1 sat directly on the back seat, the seatbelt cut across his neck, which is obviously not safe.

[FreeButtonBee]

Can anyone recommend a narrow HBB? I have 3 under 4 and at some point will have to take DD out of her Britax Dualfix but ideally I'd like to keep all three in a row and not have one in the third row. All my kids are tiny/slim so these enormous hulking HBB are a bit unnecessary and I really could do with something more streamlined. I have a Volvo XC90 so lots of room but the HBBs are so big that eg the middle belt isn't long enough to go around the seat and into the lock/button bit. and would a total nightmare once they are out of the harness. It would be impossible to buckle up.

[dementedpixie]

Does she have a backless booster at the moment Braceybracegirl? If so then there is no need to buy another seat. She legally needs to be in some sort of seat as she isn't tall enough or old enough to go without one

Alwaysthepessimist, no i wouldn't put her in a backless booster at that age as a high backed booster is much safer with side impact protection.

[BaronessEllaSaturday]

alwaysthepessimist yes, no, maybe. It isn't just height it is weight as well. If she is 125cm and 19kg then you wouldn't be able to buy her one under the new rules.

[HowDoYouExplainThis]

Do not go by weight for a seatbelt. You need to look at how it's positioned on the child, can the child sit still without moving around, it's about how their bones are developed. Please do not just switch them over when they get to the weight they say is okay for no reason

[Braceybracegirl]

Yes a backless booster which she's happy to go in.

[Spikeyball]

For those thinking of buying car seats, the 1,2,3 seats have more room than the 1 seats and the 2,3 seats have more room than the 1,2,3 seats.
Ds switched to a 1,2,3 seat at 2 1/2 with the 5 point harness being removed when he was 4 and then to a 2,3 seat when he was 8 which he is still in age 11.

[SuseB]

FreeButtonBee mine are in Halfords Essential HBBs, they are narrow - I have three kids across the back of my Kia Carens, two in the Halfords HBBs and one in a Britax Evolva which is wider. The two in the Halfords seats are 8yo/126cm and 10yo/130cm. HTH

[DebratsEtiquette]

I find it strange that people are keen to keep using backless booster seats when there is evidence that children should be in HBB until 150cm. I understand cost could be a factor but at our school we have parents rocking up in their v expensive cars and little children on booster cushions or no car seat at all. Of course that makes other children feel babyish for using their HBB. Hopefully it will become like seat belts: evidence showed seat belt wearing saved lives, cars not fitted with seat belts = exemption, cars fitted with seatbelts = law to wear it, all newly built cars were fitted with seat belts = law that must use. Huge advertising programme 'clunk click every trip' and not wearing a seat belt is v rare these days.

[JeffreySadsacIsUnwell]

Weight and seatbelts:

15kg is the minimum weight that an adult seatbelt will lock when the car brakes are applied. I.e. If you put a 14kg child on a booster with an adult seatbelt, the weight is not enough to trigger the locking mechanism and both booster and child will be unrestrained.

18kg is the maximum weight that a harness can restrain in the event of the car braking suddenly and the child's weight continuing to move forward, thus exerting greater pressure on the harness than simply a child sitting in the seat whilst car is in motion. I.e. If you put a 19kg child in a stage 1 car seat, it is possible that the harness would actually snap/be torn out of the seat.

I would imagine that car seat manufacturers build in some tolerance, but I wouldn't want my DC to be the one to test those tolerances...

[Verbena37]

Werkzallhourz the difference isn't only that you're an adult at that same height of 150cm but as an adult, your neck muscles are much stronger than a child's.
It has to do with their necks being flung side to side in a side impact crash as well as other more obvious reasons.

[987flowers]

Jeffrey the trouble is children fitting into the high backed boosters at 150cm. My dd is slight so can (she is 10 and 140cm) her friends are 145-150cm and haven't been able to fit in a high backed booster for 2 yrs as their shoulders are just too wide which can't be safe. If they need to be in at 150 they need to design different seats.

[987flowers]

Sorry not jeffrey but debrats!

[JeffreySadsacIsUnwell]

OTOH I think there is a place for backless boosters for children under 135cm, and that is for short, non-regular trips, eg going home to a friend's house. If backless boosters were taken off the market entirely, those children would simply not use any kind of car seat or booster and it would be claimed as an unexpected short journey. I always have a spare booster or two in the boot just in case I need to pick up a friend's children - would rather have them as safe as possible in the event of an emergency! There's no way I could carry around another couple of HBBs, or fit them on the car seats. We use the Trunki Boostapaks, because of the strap to bring the seatbelt down to the correct height - DC1 is extremely small for age.

[Artandco]

987 - you can't get wide high back boosters. Ie the cybex solution we have I can fit in width wise as an adult. The concord transformer xt is also one that grows out as well as up

[DebratsEtiquette]

Thanks 987, hadn't thought about that. With a slight child at 130 cm it hadn't crossed my mind some would be too big. Our Cybex is suppose to last until age 12, but we'll have to see what happens in reality.

[FreeButtonBee]

Thanks SuseB! Will have a look - I also need to get two new ones for my mum's car overseas. Soooo many car seats!