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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To not understand flipping car seats!?

41 replies

MumsOnCrack · 21/09/2017 11:54

Jesus! How hard can it be?! I'm really struggling to understand what kind of car seat I need to get for DD (10months).

Does anyone understand? (I don't think I'm thick but I'm scared of going to Halfords et al and being conned into buying one that's £300+ when I don't need to).

Have the powers that be made it especially difficult? Any recommendations re isofix car seats that last as long as possible that aren't hundreds would be great! Also have zero idea whether forward or rear facing.

Maybe I am just dim!

OP posts:
lovewatchingrainfall · 21/09/2017 12:02

You are not BU at all. As far as I know you have the keep them rear ward facing till they are 15 months. You get a load of posters saying you should rear ward for as long as possible. And yes you possible should in terms of seat
The Joie 360 is amazing as it spins.
I have the Nuna rebel plus and love it but it is £££
There is a newer Joie that does till 12 which is meant to be good.

I found mothercare not great
John Lewis was amazing in terms of help
So was Halfords

ElizabethShaw · 21/09/2017 12:08

You want a group 1 seat that rear faces and forward faces - usually they either rear face til 13kg (18 months ish) or 18kg (4ish).

TammySwansonTwo · 21/09/2017 12:08

My twins are in infant car seats at the moment but when they outgrow them I'm getting the Joie Every Stage as it will last until they don't need them any more. However, I think it's only isofix in forward facing mode, which you won't be able to use for a while.

FruitCider · 21/09/2017 12:10

Keep your child on stage 0+ until they are 13kg. Keep them rear facing for as long as possible - up to 18kg if you can.

ElizabethShaw · 21/09/2017 12:10

If you look on a site like Kiddicare then any of the seats that go from birth-4 or birth-12 will do what you need.

Sooooooooooooooooooooo · 21/09/2017 12:12

Have a look and see which ones are rated safest. Some may be cheap for good reason, so don't rule out paying more.

abigailgabble · 21/09/2017 12:13

Go to mamas and papas . It's complicated and one does not fit all cars. They made it SO easy.

EnglishRose13 · 21/09/2017 12:18

Which Isofix do you have?

We've just bought a new car seat. We have the 2Way Fix which is only compatible with the 2Way Pearl. The 2Way Pearl wasn't suitable as you can't use it without the base and my husband's car isn't isofix compatible.

We bought the Joie Steadi in the end. £100. I'd budgeted more but the guy from Mothercare fitted a number of seats and said that one was the most suitable for my car.

PotteringAlong · 21/09/2017 12:19

At 10 months do you need a new car seat? Do they not still fit into their bucket seat?

Sunshinegirl82 · 21/09/2017 12:19

It is 5x safer for a child to be rear facing rather than forward facing. The current guidance is to aim to keep them rear facing until age 4 if possible. Do you have an in car safety centre near you? They are great! You don't have to spend a fortune, the Joie stages for example is pretty reasonable price wise and offers extended rear facing.

MotherofSausage · 21/09/2017 12:20

This reply has been withdrawn

Message from MNHQ: This post has been withdrawn

Original poster
MumsOnCrack · 21/09/2017 12:21

She's does fit but her head is nearly level with the top of the seat and someone told me that was a sign she needs a new one?! I just really don't want to buy the wrong thing! Have an X4 so should fit any of them and is new.

I really do not mind spending the money if it's needed but it's sooooooo complicated and I don't trust any of the people I've spoken to in shops alone to know what's right!

OP posts:
Original poster
MumsOnCrack · 21/09/2017 12:22

Ah, I thought the Joie 360 was a good one Confused

OP posts:
Original poster
MumsOnCrack · 21/09/2017 12:23

Googling car safety centre...

OP posts:
Original poster
MumsOnCrack · 21/09/2017 12:23

I just don't get why it's such a minefield as it's too important to get wrong.

OP posts:
Sunshinegirl82 · 21/09/2017 12:24

Honestly OP, try the in car safety centre they know what they're talking about. If you don't have one near by they can advise you over the phone. They will ask your child's weight and height to make sure you get a seat that will last as long as possible for you (some have shorter shells than others so a tall child will outgrow the seat more quickly).

CarlHickbread · 21/09/2017 12:26

We have the nuna rebl plus, it's good and I like the spin feature but I find the straps a total pain to adjust!

makingmiracles · 21/09/2017 12:36

Joie stages is what I have (different from every stage)
It's from birth to approx 7 and is isofix and isize so fits with all the new regs. It can be rear faced until approx 4 yrs old and forward facing till 7
I bought mine from a company called buggybaby which was £50 cheaper than what mothercare sell it for (£250 rather than £300)
I'm really pleased with it And daughter seems comfy and safe in it.

makingmiracles · 21/09/2017 12:37

Oh it has a decent recline on it btw, something I found hard to find in extended rear facing seats!

unlucky83 · 21/09/2017 12:37

'Which' did a thing on car seats a good few years ago and surprisingly some of the most expensive ones failed their test (did as badly as the cheapest polystrene one using the main seat belt from 9 months....the kind you can no longer get ...)
Their test included a corner impact test -which apparently the standard tests don't include...
And they did a thing about the dangers of expired car seats.
Apparently the biggest problem is incorrectly fitted /unsuitable car seats - it really does have to be suitable for your car too. (in my old Escort I ended up having the rear seat belts changed (by an MOT garage) as I could only get one seat that would fit otherwise ...and I didn't want that one as it was £££££ and had a belt tensioning system that according to a couple of users had failed and left people stuck on car parks with unusable, dangerous loose car seats)

Anyway I would have a look and see if Which have done anything more recently.
And also the police used to do a car seat checking /advice thing - might be worth asking them too.

makingmiracles · 21/09/2017 12:39

Oh and that price includes the seat and the base-beware a lot of seats the bases you have to buy separately, one of the ones we were looking at before we bought the stages, which was the Isi go modular was 200 for seat then £200 for the base!

JassyRadlett · 21/09/2017 12:41

We've got the maxi cosi 2wayfix Pearl and it's been really good - DS2 is a flipping giant but he's still reasonably comfortable rear facing at nearly 2, and when we need to we can flip it around to forward facing. V easy to use and I actually find it easier to get squirming toddlers in and out of rear facing seats, especially in tight places.

Writerwannabe83 · 21/09/2017 12:42

It bemuses me too OP Confused

Someone told me it was the law that children HAD to be rear facing.... so why are places still selling forward facing seats?

JassyRadlett · 21/09/2017 12:46

It's rear facing until 15 months.

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