car seat for child heavier than 36kg

[bobfromtwickenham]

I've looked at the rules and they say a child under 12 years or under 135cm needs a car seat. My daughter is 8 years old and 131cm, so yes, she needs a car seat.
But, she is exactly 36kg, and her existing car seat has a max weight of 36kg. And, as far as I can make out, so does every other car seat on the market (whether backless or not).
She isn't particularly fat so I'm sure there must be other children heavier than 36kg but shorter than 135cm. Has anyone solved this conundrum?

The average weight of an eight year old girl is less than 26 kilo’s so it’s unlikely to be a common problem.
For your dd’s height she should weigh approx 27 kilos.

Are you sure you have weighed her correctly?

36kg would be obese at that height, if she isn't fat then maybe it's an issue with the scales.

Check her weight first. 5 and a half stone is more like a 10-11yo weight.

Are you sure on the weight? That seems very heavy, my DD's were in there's until 12 (they were short but also liked the cup holders, only stopped when we changed car which had cup holders!)

I think some of them can be used beyond the 36kg weight limit, try asking on the 'Car seat advice uk' group if you're on facebook.

If she isn’t particularly fat I think one of your measurements must be off. That’s very heavy for that height.

I'd be inclined to check her weight again too. 131cm and 36kg but she doesn't appear overweight doesn't sound right.

Is 36kg right?

36kg is right. She is pretty muscular and, yes, probably overweight too. But I don't want to discuss that here, my question is about car seats.

It's fine. Booster seats have a upper weight limit but only to comply with legalisation.

The job of a booster seat is to position the adult seatbelt effectively. I have no idea what my daughter is now but she's probably close to the upper weight limit. I'm not worried at all..

If you need a roomier seat look at the Diono Monterey. Adjustable shoulder width too and easily accommodate up to 150cm- which is when most children actually only fit adult seat belt.

Essentially as she's in a booster seat her weight doesn't matter. 36kg is simply the end of the legal standard. The seat isn't taking her weight in a crash, it's just acting as a pre-crash positioner for the seatbelt. The seatbelt is what will protect her and that is designed to take adults of weights far beyond 36kg. There is no risk in using a booster seat past the 36kg weight limit.

If you were using a harnessed seat then you must never go past the weight limit but in this case it's fine to keep using it as long as she isn't so heavy that she is actually deforming the plastic of the seat (which seems unlikely).

Thanks BertieBotts, that makes a lot of sense. I'll continue using her current seat (which does have a back) until she stops being comfortable in it.
Come to think of it, the seat has to take her weight during normal use, but in a crash the seat belt is taking her weight.

Not what you asked, but at 140cm, my 10 year old isn't comfortable without a booster for long journeys - he either has to slouch, or not straighten his knees, or pull his knees up so his feet are on the seat. So, you may find you need the seat for longer than just a few cm growth.

My 131cm DS is on a booster. It had a (removable) back but we took it off recently because he couldn't get his shoulders in it.