To be so bloody confused about car seats?

[Bugsymalonemumof2]

I have a DS he is 2.4 months and 17.5kg. He has recently learnt to physically unclip his car seat harness so I'm trying to come up with a solution.

I stop as soon as I can but do lots and lots of dual. Carriageway and motorway driving so it is often miles before I can stop.

I was looking at the bumper shield car seats but they seem to be 18kg limits for the shields?

I'm so confused :(

[hennaoj]

Joie Bold is probably of no use anyway. My rather tall autistic 5 year old (out grew a regular group 1 car seat at age 2 aswell) has recently managed to undo his harnessedi seat belt on it by himself.
Have you considered a crelling harness?

[angelikacpickles]

OP, just to check, do you know that the harness on your current seat will most likely be outgrown at 18kg and that it is absolutely not safe to use a high back booster before age 4?

On what basis do you say this? Since when are seats rated by age?

[Absofrigginlootly]

1) The website you mentioned is actively marketing seats as being suitable for up to age 4, or 105cm, when in reality, the seat is only suitable for up to 18kg in weight.

Age is irrelevant to car seat technology, they work on weight limits. The fact that you keep referring to age, not weight leads me to believe you are confused about the facts.

As I understood from the research I have done, age is not irrelevant because of the musculoskeletal development of children. Their height and weight doesn’t matter in terms of spinal development for example. So the advice to rear face until 4 years (ideally 6) isn’t just about which seats are suitable to rear face up until 25kg and that is generally the average weight of 4-6 year olds, it’s that it’s also safer because children under 4 have much bigger head to body ratios and immature vertebrae - meaning a serious spinal cord injury is much more likely in forward facing vs RF

[Windingstreams]

@anym0use I’m not getting confused. Numerous research has shown that being overweight as a child increases height. I just googled it to double check and yep, it’s all there!

[tinysnickersaremyfavourite]

@bugsymalone I suggest that you join the Facebook group called "csftl - UK and Europe" and post your query there.
There are qualified car seat fitters and retailers in the group who can advise you of your options in this situation.

[kaytee87]

God even I struggle to unclip my sons car seat 😂

[AlocAcoc]

Never intended to be patronising - just trying to signpost to expert information.

[Bugsymalonemumof2]

@tinysnickersaremyfavourite

That is exactly the issue I have, they don't fit and leave the front seats usable.

[GreenHouseKeeping]

a max 18kg seat could well be suitable for a 4 year old. It depends how much the child weighs!

I'm repeating myself here, but it is an important point, so:

The 'around age 4' guidelines are there because a child on the 50th centile will hit the max weight limit around their 4th birthday.

That means that approx 50% will reach that limit before their 4th birthday.

Therefore at a conservative estimate (given boys tend to weigh more than girls of the same age) more that 50% of 3 year olds will be too heavy for an ISOfix RF seat.

Therefore marketing them as being 'suitable for up to age 4' is highly irresponsible.

In reality, fewer than 50% of 4 year olds would still be safe in that seat.

I hope that explains what I meant?

[tinysnickersaremyfavourite]

Greenhousekeeping - a max 18kg seat could well be suitable for a 4 year old. It depends how much the child weighs!
My niece at 4 was dinky and only about 15kg so it would have been fine for her.

[tinysnickersaremyfavourite]

@greenhousekeeping do you have any source for the fact that ERF advice has changed?

[GreenHouseKeeping]

Also, there are no isofix seats that rear face beyond 18kg because of the weight limit of the isofix systemic.

Yes, that is precisely my point. You rather patronisingly 'suggested I contact' In Car Safety Centre, who would be able to give me 'appropriate advice' when their advice that a max 18kg weight limit seat was suitable for a 4 year old!

Your move.

[tinysnickersaremyfavourite]

Re: the two way elite - we have two because I also have a massive child. He
Is actually skinny but super tall and seemingly very dense.
It does fit in most cars, but if OP and her OH are 5"11 and 6"6 it will render the front seat totally useless in many small cars. We have a focus and I can't drive it with the twe behind me because my knees block thr steering wheel. I can just about sit as a front passenger with it behind me but it's not comfortable because my knees are wedged into the glovebox.
Using the twe in a fiesta made the front seat unusable for us.

[GreenHouseKeeping]

You're conflating 2 issues here.

1. The website you mentioned is actively marketing seats as being suitable for up to age 4, or 105cm, when in reality, the seat is only suitable for up to 18kg in weight.
   
   Age is irrelevant to car seat technology, they work on weight limits. The fact that you keep referring to age, not weight leads me to believe you are confused about the facts.
   
   
2. The advice about RF changed, as the research that found it to be '5 times safer' than FF was disproven in more recent studies (the original research is now 12 years old, so not exactly a surprise).
   
   In a nutshell, whilst it is unlikely that, technically speaking, RF is going to do any harm, it can no longer be claimed to be '5 times safer'. The original dataset was too small from which to draw this conclusion, plus car seat technology has changed and improved a lot in this timeframe.
   
   Many seats, esp '2 way' models actually fare better in side impacts in their FF position than the RF one.

[AlocAcoc]

Sorry, final point! iSize seats are based on height, R44 seats are based on weight.

[AlocAcoc]

*system

[AlocAcoc]

Also, there are no isofix seats that rear face beyond 18kg because of the weight limit of the isofix systemic.

[AlocAcoc]

@GreenHouseKeeping Was that aimed at me? I don’t think I’m confused but more than happy to be directed to the knew advice to clarify.

I am aware there are issues with FF harnessing vs HBB (neck strength/head weight vs skeletal maturity) but I’m not aware of a change in advice regarding ERF.

[GreenHouseKeeping]

You do realise that the advice about ERF has changed don't you?

I do see why you're confused about the 'Age 4' thing though - it seems that many of the Isofix ERF car seats are actually being marketed by age and height, not weight! How irresponsible.

[AlocAcoc]

@GreenHouseKeeping Children under 4 do not have the skeletal maturity to be safely restrained by a seatbelt. I would put a 20kg 3 year old in an ERF to 25kg seat like the Britax TWE, Axkid Minikid or Diono Radian 5.

If you are unsure about this then I suggest you contact In Car Safety Centre to discuss with them. High street stores like Mothercare or Halfords will not give you appropriate advice because they do not stock any ERF to 25kg seats.

The legal minimum standards for car seats are very low (e.g. they are only tested at a speed of 30mph!) and therefore some car seats are much safer than others.

I hope that helps.

[GreenHouseKeeping]

@AlocAcoc

HBB May be legal under 4 but unfortunately that doesn’t mean that they are safe

I think you're a bit confused here, the age of the DC is irrelevant. Car seats rely on weight limits, not age. Stage 2/3 seats are suitable from 15 kg.

Most guides say 'from around age 4' as the DC on the 50th centile will hit this weight around their 4th Birthday. That means that half of all children will hit that weight limit as a 3 year old.

Just out of interest, what seat would you put a 20kg, 3 year old in?

Are you really suggesting that every Stage 2/3 car seat on the market is 'unsafe' for DCs that meet the weight guidelines?

[MigGril]

OP what car do you have very few don't fit the two way elite, it's not Isofix and fits in small cars. I had it in my Yaris and fits in the Focus which has the problem of having short seat belts which rules out a lot of car seats.

[AnyM0use]

@Windingstreams - McDonald's better rebuild quickly with really tall ceilings!
You have misunderstood the science of what you're trying to say. Eating more doesn't make you taller, it's the opposite - malnourishment makes you shorter.

@Bugsymalonemumof2 - I'm not sure about the buckle issue, but please consider keeping him rear facing for longer. A 2 year old (even a big one) doesn't have the neck strength to protect their spine in even minor bumps, thanks to the momentum of their big heads. The difference in crash tests between front and rear facing is staggering.
I'd recommend the Axkid MiniKid - not cheap (£300-£350), but works up to 25kg and has an angle adjustment which means it can fit in smaller cars when in the upright position.

[ZippyBungleandGeorge]

@Bugsymalonemumof2 sorry that was for OP

[ZippyBungleandGeorge]

Just wanted to add, DH installed isofix in his old car, the parts cost about twenty pounds, if that gives you more compatibility options