Second Hand Maxi Cosi Cabriofix

[Booklover81]

Hi, i need some advice here...
Have been proudly buying everything secondhand for lo due next month (except mattress). Thought nothing about buying a second hand car seat and base, actually got a total bargain. Money is super tight at the mo.

Friend casually mentioned today that this is totally unsafe and now i am in a total panic. Googling suggests that this is a massive no-no unless you can guarantee it hasnt been in an accident. Well although i met the seller, who was very nice, i can only take her word that it hasnt. She said it is less than a year old and it certainly seems to be in vgc and same model that is currently in the shops.

What to do? I cant really afford a new one or to waste the money i spent on it but i cant stop thinking WHAT IF now.

Is there anywhere i can take it to get it given the once over? I also bought the isofix base from her but these generally seem to be ok second hand....

Panicked and confused!
TIA

I did get told that the only things not to buy 2nd hand were mattresses & carseats...

I'm not entirely sure why though. I didn't buy 2nd hand but am using all the same stuff for DD2 that's been in boxes in the loft which is pretty similar?

I think its because although the lady said it hadnt, i cant guarantee that it has been in a knock or accident or even dropped. Whereas reusing your own carseat for another child, you know it is safe. Or same if buying second hand from family or friend, you can vouch for its history.
My OH thinks i am being unreasonable and overreacting again, but we had no idea you were supposed to replace car seats after the most minor of accidents!

If there was somewhere they could be tested, id feel much better. Anyone know of anywhere that does this service? Or should i ditch it and buy new?

No one will verify the safety of a second hand card seat for you, there is no test service etc.
It's too risky to hold on to it. It's the one thing that you will never regret investing in.

Did she say why she was getting rid of it? Less than a year old seems a short time to be owning a car seat.
You could check the date of manufacture on the underneath of the seat.

How old is it ? I'm sure the small print on these said to replace after five years due to potential warping due to sunlight etc ? We had one for my son who is turning four but the pebble was being introduced then so depends on how old it is

It will be about a year old now weve had it for a few weeks and it was about 10.5 months old. She said she was selling because it wasnt compatible with her new double pram and her twin boys wouldnt fit it much longer anyway.

She sold 2.. She obvs wasnt using one for both twins as my previous post suggests!!

I would use it.

Conventional wisdom says you should buy new. Because maybe they were in a minor rear shunt which they didn't consider an accident, or maybe they dropped the car seat down the stairs, or the buggy fell over with the seat in it, maybe they've stored it in a freezing/boiling garage for the last year, or maybe they leave it in the way and trip over it all the time.

TBH, yes those things may be the case but they're also the case when people own stuff and don't realise that they're supposed to treat the car seat with extra special kid gloves all the time. Yet nobody worries about reusing a car seat (etc) for their second or third child!

IMO if it looks well cared for, not bashed about, and the people seemed nice and trustworthy and were happy to answer questions etc, I'd use it. I know it's more of a risk than buying one from a shop but it's such a miniscule risk. What if the one in the shop has been dropped off the shelf? You'd never know.

She was extremely helpful. Took me through a demo of it - adjusting straps and the storage parts. It also came with the instruction manual. All warning/instruction stickers are present and the orange sticker on the bottom with the E license number is there but nothing that seems to show a date. Where would this be?