Can we do this with the car seat in the car?

[Carrseat]

DH wants to have dd in the car seat in the back and then push forward the middle seat of the car and the seat on the other side, to effectively extend the boot space. Is it safe for to do this when travelling with dd in the car seat?!

Hopeful bump

Does it alter the way through car seat fits? Would anything be able to be flung into the car from the boot in a crash (through any gap that's been created)?

In principle I don't think off setting the seats is an issue.

So it's a split back seat and she'd be in the part where the back seat is still in its normal position? I think it's fine in that she'll still be anchored to the existing seat. The only thing that would put me off would be if there was anything loose/heavy in the other half of the boot/back seat that could move around or become a projectile in a crash. Willing to be corrected by others though.

I'll put my head above the parapet to say that we've done this in the past - which doesn't mean I'm telling you to do the same!

You would obviously only do this if you're going to have something big in the boot, so whatever it is do think about how secured it is so it won't hit her or tip on her if there's a crash or if you just take a tight corner.

I can't see the problem if the seat is attached.

Yes it’s fine so long as there’s no loose bits in the boot space.

We’ve done that before. Just make sure nothing is likely to fall onto the car seat through the gap obviously.

Does it actually fit? We couldn't even get the arm rest down with our car seat in the car.

I think it’s fine for the seat but you’re making the boot part of the ‘cabin’ and whatever is loose in the cabin is a potential projectile in a crash, so I’d be wary about What you’re putting in there

Thank you !!!

It's fine as long as you can fit the car seat securely ie the seat back it's installed on is fully upright and you can access the seatbelt if you need to use the seatbelt to fit it.

As others have said, be aware items in the boot can be dangerous to any occupants of the car (including baby) if you had a crash - you should consider securing items with luggage straps, especially anything heavier such as a buggy. The back seats + parcel shelf do usually do a decent job preventing items from being thrown into the passenger area of the car.

If you have a second row which can slide back and forward and you just mean the seats will be set at different places, then no issue at all. If the seats fold down, then you should be aware of the boot thing.

I think TBF a lot of people do this all the time without thinking about it but it is worth considering.