to leave my child in the car with a travel monitor.

[Libra1975]

The car sends my 16week old LO to sleep, am I being unreasonable to want to buy a travel monitor so when I get home and he is fast asleep in his carseat I can leave the monitor with him and go into the house to get things done rather than wake him up?

Fortyplus, your stats "13 fatalitites since 2000" actually makes me feel much MORE comfortable leaving DS in the car. That's gotta be safer than pretty much anything else we do in the day (sleeping in cot, eating, bathing etc).

I cannot imagine doing this and I have to agree with an earlier poster...I would ring the police. This may have been safe 50 years ago but, sadly, that's not the case anymore.

Regardless of how much it may help, never leave your child unattended in the car.

Bubbaluv I think it's just a case of accepting a level of risk - I think some people stick their head in the sand and think nothing can ever happen to them. If you decide to accept the tiny risk involved then no one should judge you for it. I'm sure a child is far more likely to die in a car crash than sleeping in a locked car, but for me it's the element of premeditation in putting the child at that risk that would stop me doing it.

I suppose it's because they are tiny and helpless and can't decide for themselves. My two play rugby with my blessing, but that's their decision not mine. They are far more likely to come to harm doing that, too.

SummerC - WHY NOT?

The chances of anything happening are slim I imagine but I saw my neighbour's car smashed into by a joyrider eight years ago. It was parked on her drive at the time and we live in a cul de sac. Her car was a wreck. For this reason, no..I wouldn't risk it.

I dont suppose they were looking at the sat nav when they decided to try and use our cul de sac as an escape route! (was sat nav invented then?)

That sounds like one good reason, any more for seeker?

I was about to reply and say that we did this in winter (ds could not be transfered) then realised you are talking about leaving them in a car on a road or driveway. We have an internal access garage so we could leave the door open and see him from the lounge so technically he was inside. I would never do it on the road, isn't it illegal? It is here (oz) I'm sure.
Also any time that is not winter your car can heat up to 65c in 3 minsutes! but maybe that's just an oz thing too.
It's your decision but I could never relax

That is an argument for not putting a child in a car, ever, not for not leaving him or her in the car alone to finish a sleep. Nobody has told the op that she shouldn't sit in the car reading a book waiting for her child to wake up - in fact people are telling her that's what she should do. In what way does the mother's presence protect the car from joy riders, freak mechanical failure or meteorites?

dont put them to sleep in bed either in case a tree falls on your house. (this happened a couple of weeks back here)

honestly

I agree, I would never have left DS in the car on a street when we lived in London, but frankly I think he's safer in the car at the front of our house now than he was in his cot in our flat in London!
He's certainly safer parked there than when we drive anywhere (and he has no say in being driven anywhere either). I simply think it is wrong to make a blanket statement that is it always risky.
Fortyplus, how old are your children? Can they really understand the risks involved in playing rugby? I personally know 2 people who have broken their necks playing rugby. I would still let DS play if he wanted to. Life is too short to spend it in a safe little bubble.
Leaving DS in the car at MY house is NOT risky in the scheme of things, so don't tell me it is - you don't know (not talking just to you FP). If it is where you live then don't leave your child in the car.Pretty simple I think!

I wouldn't do it, and never did it. But I'm a fanatical grape-cutter too (hello, myredcardy) even though DS is 6.5 and probably wouldn't choke now!!

Exactly Egypt, I've seen a lorry drive through the side of a house too, so best to put the to sleep in some sort of underground bunker.

My parents used to do that with us (letting us sleep in the car for a bit), and it was no big deal. I think nowadays we tend to freek a bit at this things. I would not do it as, like Myredcardigan ,I would not be able to relax. But if the car is just in front of the house and in full sight from window + baby monitor, maybe YANBU.

I thought car seats were bad for babies left in them for a long time?in that the position of it is not good for their wee backs for extended periods of time?.....thats why they recommed flat sleeping...I wouldnt do it with my DS.

I have come to the conclusion that it is much too dangerous to have children at all.

I think this is one for each individual to decide based on their own situation and assessment of risk.

I wouldn't do it as I wouldn't relax. When they have gone to sleep I have sat and read in the car. But that is right for me. I think there is nothing wrong with doing this in certain circumstances.

You know your child, you know your area, you know your car seat, you make a decision based upon your personal situation. I think we all have enough common sense to do what is safe.

Seeker...I think I already mentioned why I would not leave my child in the car alone. Last time I checked, I was entitled to my own opinion. But please, if this has changed, please tell me.

Of course you're entitled to your own opinion, SummerC! And you of course can decide whether or not you personally leave your baby asleep in a car.

But you said that no one else should do it either. And that you would ring the police if you saw anyone doing it. That's why I was asking for a reasonable and logical reason for not doing so. And no body has come up with one. I asked you specifically because you were so definite that no one should - I thought I was missing something.

Oh, of course - I forgot about the scary ANYTHING!

I think I would do it if the drive wasn't in full view of the street. However I don't drive so DS is only in the car when I'm with someone else. If we get home and DS is asleep, one of us pops back in for a book for the other who stays there and reads. At this time of year they also bring extra blankets for when the car gets cold Of course DS almost never sleeps longer than 45 minutes so its not too bad.

"Also any time that is not winter your car can heat up to 65c in 3 minsutes! but maybe that's just an oz thing too."

I'm in the UK, my car is more likely to be landed upon by a martian space craft than this happening.

The fact you are not suppose to leave babies in their carseats for long is interesting especially now you get so many buggies onto which you can attach the carseat.

libra good point - ours do this

YANBU - i've always left ds asleep in the car which is parked on the road because he had one of the big 0-4 car seats so too difficult to remove from the car with him in it. We don't live on a main road or anything though.