UPDATED. Confused about car seats? Your questions answered

[LauraEMumsnet]

Car seats and car seat safety can be a bit of a minefield, but when it comes to buying and fitting a seat for your little one, it's vital that parents get it right.

So what exactly is ISOfix? Can you buy a second-hand car seat? And what's the difference between R44 and i-Size?

In the next couple of weeks, we'll be filming an FAQ-style video with car seat expert Jan James, Chief Executive of Good Egg Safety, who will be answering your questions on all things car seats.

If you have something you would like to ask Jan, just pop your question on the thread below and we'll do our best to answer as many as possible.

Happy posting!
MNHQ

I would like to know - I keep hearing a lot on car seat websites about how four (and sometimes five) year olds are not big enough to sit in a high backed booster due to skeletal development particularly of their hips. The only "source" I can find for this is various graphics posted on facebook, which doesn't constitute a source for me. Is this evidence based or is it rubbish? ie, is there an evidence based reason why a forward facing seat with 5 point harness would be safer for a non-escapee 3, 4, or 5 year old in comparison to a well fitting booster with side protection? (I know it would be safer for them to be rear facing, but that's not what I'm asking.)

holidays IIRC you simply can't use any child seat on those seats, there are a few exceptions, I had a Kiddy one with impact shield which specifically stated it was OK to be used on a rear facing seat (not from birth, between 9-18kg), but most won't be because the crash forces would be so different to how the seat is tested.

My car currently fits my three, with the baby seat between the two high back boosters. In the future though, we won't be able to fit three high backs.

Is it safer to have the eldest (8, but short 😉) on a less protective backless booster in the middle of the back seat, or in a more protective HBB but in the front seat? (with airbags or without?)

Anyone who can afford to run a car should be able to afford to buy an extended-rearfacing seat. I recently bought one for £99. A reputable brand and a seat that has performed well in crash tests. Rear facing until 4 then turns forward facing until 6. Less than £20 per year of use.

Only the difference of about the cost of one tank of fuel between that and a Nania.

My son has reached 18kg at 3 and a half and is now too big for his rear facing be safe seat. As he is tall and big for his age is he safe to forward face ?

I'd love it if someone did a series of pictures showing the legal options for each type of child, e.g. picture of a toddler in either a rear or forward facing 5 point harness (am I right?) I know some options are safer than others but if I have a 2, 3, 5 and 7 year old to get across town I just want to do it safely and legally (and not to be made to feel bad that I haven't invested in the creme de la creme carseats).

What's the best/most pragmatic approach to car seats when travelling abroad? Particularly where other countries' laws differ to ours, and situations where it's impractical to take your own car seat.

My friend told me that some cheaper seats are only tested to 30mph as that is the basic requirement in the uk? How will I know more about the safety standards when I'm looking for a seat?

I have seen car seats on the market with no straps but a big bumper bar instead. How safe would those be compared to traditional straps?

This is what I found on the web:-
The Law. The law requires all children travelling in the front or rear seat of any car, van or goods vehicle must use the correct child car seat until they are either 135 cm in height or 12 years old (which ever they reach first). After this they must use an adult seat belt.

My 4 year old is in a 5point harness 1,2,3 car seat. My 7 year old is sitting in the child car seat but now uses the main car seat belt across him and the child seat. He is too tall to use the straps on the car seat but the seat grows with him until he is too tall for it. When he becomes too big I can strip the chair down to just the booster seat until he is 12. I also have the same seat for my 4 year old and I will do the same for him.
It's all about the side protection for them while they are still growing.
I think I kept them both in rear facing car seats until they were 19 months.

avocadoincident the most comprehensive safety test is the swedish plus test which is v diffixult to pass, the german adac also test comprehensively so seats that perform well for these are good to go for.

And yes min srandards is 30mph which can also be 2x cars doing 15 which is barely a knock.

Sorry if we arent supposed to answer on this thread lol!

Hi everyone!

We're excited to share our car seat FAQ video with you, which you'll find at the top of this thread!

Unfortunately we weren't able to answers all your questions in this video, but Jan has sent over answers to most of those not mentioned, which I'll be posting on her behalf shortly

@Chocolateisfab

Can never grasp where a dc's legs would go long term rf??!

Jan's response:

An extended rear-facing seat is the safest option for your child.There are many options available now that can rear-face to 18kg or up to 25kg.

Children are more flexible than adults and find rear-facing seats very comfortable; they can put their legs wherever they choose.

The 25kg extended rear-facing seats tend to offer a lot of legroom as they are designed to fit an average-sized child to approximately 6 years old.

@DippyAvocado

I have older DC but both are in high backed boosters still. I believe the law says booster seats until at least 1m35 but recommended until 1m50, is that right? Is there a height/weight limit for the high backed boosters? DD1 is the only one of her friends who still uses them but I think they're safer.

Jan's response:

The legal minimum for coming out of a booster seat in the UK is 135 cm or age 12, whichever is the soonest.

Many children reach this height from the age of 8, however their body is still developing and we believe that this is too young to stop using a booster seat if the seat belt still doesn’t fit them correctly.

You can tell if it is a good fit by checking the following five things:

1. They can sit with their back flat against their seat
2. Their knees bend over the edge of the seat
3. Their feet are on the floor
4. The lap part of the belt is on their hips NOT their abdomen
5. The shoulder belt runs from their hip, across their chest and over their shoulder. If fitted with height adjusters, the diagonal strap should lie centrally over their shoulder and away from their neck!

If it’s not meeting these criteria, then they should continue using a high-backed booster seat until they do.

All boosters will fit a child until they are 150cm tall and several European countries have made this their legal minimum because it’s safer.

@BertieBotts

I would like to know - I keep hearing a lot on car seat websites about how four (and sometimes five) year olds are not big enough to sit in a high backed booster due to skeletal development particularly of their hips. The only "source" I can find for this is various graphics posted on facebook, which doesn't constitute a source for me. Is this evidence based or is it rubbish? ie, is there an evidence based reason why a forward facing seat with 5 point harness would be safer for a non-escapee 3, 4, or 5 year old in comparison to a well fitting booster with side protection? (I know it would be safer for them to be rear facing, but that's not what I'm asking.)

Jan's response:

Even if they fit within the manufacturer's height and weight guidelines, a 3 year old is too young for a booster seat.

The iliac crest of the pelvis is not very well developed in young children. It’s the largest of the three bones that merge to form the hip bone. It is this part of the pelvis that holds the lap belt in place correctly.

A booster helps younger children by positioning the lap belt at the top of the thighs.

However, in the youngest children, the pelvis is still very small and there may be a greater risk of submarining under the lap belt in an accident. This can cause serious internal injuries.

A couple of high-back boosters now have a crotch strap to prevent this.

It is also worth noting that a child needs to be able to sit sensibly in a booster for it to provide adequate protection in an accident which is something younger children can find challenging!

The rules for booster seats changed in March 2017 and created a lot of confusion. These rules differ depending on whether products are old or new since that time.

Some booster cushions are approved for use with children weighing 15kg or more, but any new products on the market can only be used with children who weigh 22kg and are 125cm in height which is around the ages of 6-7.

@RockCrushesLizard

My car currently fits my three, with the baby seat between the two high back boosters. In the future though, we won't be able to fit three high backs.

Is it safer to have the eldest (8, but short 😉) on a less protective backless booster in the middle of the back seat, or in a more protective HBB but in the front seat? (with airbags or without?)

Jan's reply:

Once your baby has outgrown the baby seat, we would advise using an extended rear-facing seat as this will make it easier to get 3 across.

By the time the baby is finally ready for a high-back booster there is a good chance that your eldest child will no longer require a seat.

If he does, then we would use a backless booster in the middle as forward-facing children are safer in the back.

@RockCrushesLizard

My car currently fits my three, with the baby seat between the two high back boosters. In the future though, we won't be able to fit three high backs.

Is it safer to have the eldest (8, but short 😉) on a less protective backless booster in the middle of the back seat, or in a more protective HBB but in the front seat? (with airbags or without?)

Jan's reply:

It’s always safer to rear-face and at 3 years old, a rear-facing seat to 25kg would be the safest option for him. Once he has outgrown a 25kg seat he should be old enough to forward face in a high-back booster.

@MustBeDueSomeBetterFeet

What's the best/most pragmatic approach to car seats when travelling abroad? Particularly where other countries' laws differ to ours, and situations where it's impractical to take your own car seat.

Jan's response:

Make sure you understand the law in the country you are travelling to. EU seats can be used throughout Europe, which includes the middle east, some parts of Africa, Asia and New Zealand.

They are technically illegal to use in the USA, Canada and Australia, although they may be permitted for a holiday.

If a child is under 18kg, then using a car seat on board the plane is the safest option and a few EU seats have TUV approval for use on an aircraft. Check with your airline for their guidelines first.

A car seat can often also be taken in the hold free of charge, but make sure it is well padded and boxed to avoid being damaged.

A final option would be to order a seat from a local retailer at your destination and see if it can be delivered to where you are staying/car rental place.

We don’t recommend hiring seats as they are often old, may not be suitable for your child and you do not know the history of it.

@SusieSusieSoo

Interested to hear views on safety of children in car seats sitting in the front. Dc is 6 and sometimes sits in high back booster in front passenger seat with airbags on which is what the car seat & car manufacturers say is ok. Seat is as far back as it can go without compromising seatbelt. Seatbelt looks well positioned in this car. Seat has isofix for when he's in the back but obv just on seatbelt in front.

Is there a difference in how safe he is? (Ignoring the impact on me as the driver being more or less distracted by him being closer or further away from me which I can assess myself).

Thanks

No longer applies to me but it's fine to say dc's should rear face til 4 but if you have a tall dc you may take a different view of them sitting with their knees around their ears for journeys of anything more than a few minutes. (I had one of the first extended rear facing seats - cost me £350 in 2013 - and was the biggest and safest I could find at the time).

Jan's response:

ISOfix booster seats are heavy and when the ISOfix isn’t used, the weight of the seat itself can push into your child in a crash. So using a heavy ISOfix booster in the front seat restrained only by the adult belt should be avoided if possible.

Also, airbags are designed for adults and can cause serious injuries in smaller children, therefore we advise that children are much safer sitting in the back.

@RHTawneyonabus

The five year limit. Seems to apply to group 0 car seats but not the others? My youngest is in a recaro sport that belonged to his older brother that must be coming up to five years old but says suitable from 9 months to 12 years! I have to buy FOUR car seats (me, DH, nanny and MIL) so have to budget where I can!

Jan's reply:

The recommended time limit for any seat varies from 3-10 years depending on the manufacturer. Check your car seat manual or contact Recaro for advice on the Young Sport.

@isittheholidaysyet

Little ones are supposed to be rear-facing.

If your car has rear-facing seats in the back. Can you put a child in a forward-facing child-seat on a rear-facing seat?
Or do you still use a rear-facing child seat, but the child ends up forward facing?

Jan's response:

Most car seats have not been tested on rear-facing vehicle seats therefore they are not generally approved for use on them.

There have been a few Britax forward facing seats which do, so it would be worth using their fitfinder or contacting them.

A forward-facing seat would act as a rear-facing one in this situation.

In terms of the 2 finger strap tightness test - that seems to go out the window with the shoulder straps as they make it further away from the body. Are we testing under the straps?

And should the straps go over the shoulder from the back or just the front?

Collarbone for the tightness test.

When rear facing straps should be level with or below the shoulders (no more than 3cm lower) and when forward facing, level with or higher (no more than 3cm).

Is that what you mean about straps behind the shoulder?

For anyone asking about compact ERF seats, we have had a Britax two way elite in our Skoda Fabia with 6 foot 5 OH in front with no issues.

Our daughter is incredibly tall (she has just turned 5 and is 128cm - average for an 8 year old) and has a growth abnormality which means she is significantly less flexible than other children. She rear faced behind OH until she was 4.5 before having issues with sore legs (we regularly take 13-15hr trips overnight to the Highlands).

There was still technically room for growth in the seat, but as she had surpassed the requirements for a booster, we decided to move her into a new seat as she was uncomfortable.

I believe the Britax Maxway is similarly compact. If in doubt, I have always found the In Car Safety Centre incredibly helpful answering emails and phone queries about fitting of various seats in our cars.

Yes thankyou @bertiebotts that makes sense now!