New car seat law next week

[Confused1972]

Can anyone explain the new car seat law that is coming in next week coz Im sure it can't be right?!!
It says that children up to 15 months old must be in a rear facing seat??
I dont know any child that would still be able to fit in a rear facing seat at that age!! Where the hell would their legs go?!!
The rear facing car seats like we have state that they only go up to 9 months old and then the next stage car seats are forward facing ??
So from 9 months old to 15 months old babies

can't go in a car.
Its confusing and impossible.
Anyone know??

"The rear facing car seats are ok if you try and pull forward on the seat as the belt secures it tightly but when you push the seats from behind they move straight forward into the chair and so how is that safer with that amount of movement."

There are a few rear facing seats that fit using the seatbelt alone, but they shouldn't move as you describe. These seats have to be fully reclined when used rear facing, so the lip of the seat under the child's feet will stop it moving forward (towards the back of the car) into the seat of the car.

All the other bigger rear facing seats either have a rebound bar pressing into the car's seat (ISOFIX seats) or tether straps tying them down to the front seats or the floor of the car (seatbelt fitted seats). They are completely solid when installed correctly, if I wobble my rear facing seat it doesn't move at all and in fact the whole car rocks side to side!

Looks like the Milestone can be used rear facing to 13kg which is good for a combination seat. It's suitable from birth so you could use that whenever. It will last you a bit longer than the baby carry type seats because babies tend to outgrow the carry ones by length before they do in weight. The Graco one you should be able to use rear facing right to the 13kg limit which will likely be somewhere from 18 months - 2 years or more.

Wait you mean you can push the shell of the seat towards the back bench seat - that's normal. That's why most baby seats need you to put the handle up. It was explained to me that this acts as a kind of "roll cage" for the seat in the event it was pushed up against the back. Extended rear facing seats don't have this movement.

"Firstly the new standard means that all the rear facing seats need to be isofixed which is usually much safer than a seatbelt. That prevents any movement of the seat at all."

This is a common misconception - there often will be movement in an ISOFIX seat because it will go side to side even when clamped into the ISOFIX bars in your car.

By contrast my seatbelt fitted seat doesn't move a millimetre in any direction.

Both methods of fitting seats are equally safe if done correctly, and future phases of the new regulations will cover seatbelt fitted seats, they are not being phased out.

Thanks for all your replies.
It has made things clear and I now realise why rear facing is safer and i will remain rear facing as long as possible. Can you use an older childs rear facing car seat in the front seat of car as long as air bags are deactivated? When you're travelling alone with child its nice to see what theyre up to coz ive seen kids that work out how to undo their car seat belts and so if in the back alone then you wouldn't know if they'd undone it.

Yes I think you can put a child car seat in the front provided the airbag is disabled.

Yes, it's common practice in Sweden (where children sit rear facing until at least age 4 in most families - most parents here look at you like you've got two heads if you say your 2/3/4 year old is rear facing, in Sweden you'd be thought of as strange if you had a 2 or 3 year old forward facing!).

Anyway, this is some info from Sweden on front seat safety.