Car Seats for non-car owners?

[VJ88]

Hi folks,

We live in a city and do not own a car as we have no need for one. I'm thinking of buying a car seat for getting us home from the hospital, and then giving it to my parents for when we go to visit them. I feel totally overwhelmed by the options out there and would love to hear from folks who also don't own cars about what they did for getting baby home from hospital?

Specific thoughts/questions:
What car seat is easy to get fixed into a taxi (this is how we will get home from the hospital), as we won't be able to install the car seat in a car before baby is born?

What car seats are suitable for a reasonably long period of time? I'd like it to last for as long as possible so that my parents can hold onto it and our child can continue to use it for months/years to come.

Any specific recommendations or tips about what to search for would be hugely appreciated!

[BertieBotts]

I'd probably go for Britax Babysafe Core in this case or you could get something like Graco Extend R129 and leave it with your parents. However I think it's a bit trickier to get a good fit for a newborn in this one. It would also be a good idea to practice fitting it in your parents' car. If it's a short journey, positioning is not so much of a big issue.

If you live somewhere with black cabs you can wheel a pram directly into the cab and put it into the wheelchair space. No car seat needed. Of course you might want to weigh up the risk of crashing.

[VJ88]

Thank you, @BertieBotts . I was wondering about a black cab but didn't know if the hospital would let us leave in one. That would be by far the easiest option for us. We live about a 10 min drive from the hospital, but it's a 30 min walk and I don't fancy shuffling my way through that not long after a c-section! I'll definitely check out the car seats you mentioned, too

[BertieBotts]

Technically the hospital can't prevent yo from leaving in any way you like since they aren't a prison :) You could always ask your midwife if unsure.

[BillyNotQuiteNoMates]

Is there no way that your parents could pick you up from the hospital? That way you could get a car seat properly fitted into their car. Not all car seats will fit in all cars.

[UptoYou]

You don't need a car seat to take a baby in a taxi

[Whatstheword21]

A doona might be a good idea. It’s a car seat and a pram in one and your parents could have it once your done and will have a pram for baby too then x

[alizee21g]

Best bet for newborn is definitely dedicated infant carrier. One of the longer lasting ones are I believe maxi cosi cabriofix, Britax, avionaut pixel Pro (amazing for small babies). All fitted with car seatbelt (you don't need isofix base); have a look at videos and practice in your parents car. This type of seat should last average baby until approximately 1 year old; quite often longer than that.
Multistage seats that are advertised from newborn often don't offer good supportive fit until several months down the line.

[DuckDuckHiccup]

I would 100% get a black cab. Or alternatively, if you have a partner, have them do the 30 mins walk from the hospital with baby in the pram and you can jump in an Uber. I wouldn’t fit a car seat for the first time in a taxi - it is a bit tricky, in my opinion, and I imagine you’ll have enough stress on your plate!

[Zippedydoodahday]

I'm in London and people often borrow them off others from local Mum WhatsApp or Facebook groups for getting back from the hospital

[bettyjane]

@DuckDuckHiccup

I would 100% get a black cab. Or alternatively, if you have a partner, have them do the 30 mins walk from the hospital with baby in the pram and you can jump in an Uber. I wouldn’t fit a car seat for the first time in a taxi - it is a bit tricky, in my opinion, and I imagine you’ll have enough stress on your plate!

Yes I was going to suggest you in a taxi/Uber and partner walking home with baby in pram if possible

[JollyHostess101]

@VJ88

Thank you, @BertieBotts . I was wondering about a black cab but didn't know if the hospital would let us leave in one. That would be by far the easiest option for us. We live about a 10 min drive from the hospital, but it's a 30 min walk and I don't fancy shuffling my way through that not long after a c-section! I'll definitely check out the car seats you mentioned, too

Our hospital didn’t even check even though everyone says they do we were like do you want to check our cars eat and they looked at us rather oddly!!

[JRM17]

We have the Gracco Milestone which does Birth to 12yrs. My DS is 7yrs next week and it is still lovely and comfortable (we regularly do 3-4hr journeys to visit family). We liked it so much we have 3 (one for my car one for DH car and one in grandads car). We did get a joie stages for DH car but I hated it so much we replaced it after 3 days (Staos were always loise and I never felt DS was safe).

[Runnersandtoms]

@UptoYou

You don't need a car seat to take a baby in a taxi

People always say this. The fact it's legal doesn't make it safe! Considering how terrified I was of just dropping my first baby or damaging her inadvertently, there's no way in hell I would have got in a car with out her being in a proper car seat!

[AnotherNC22]

We live in London (zone 3) and we dont have a car. We had a Maxi Cosi Cabriofix infant carrier to start with. We actually used it more than we thought as both myself and DD had a few follow up hospital appointments or visiting the breastfeeding clinic etc, so we had her in the car seat to / from the hospital and then attached the car seat to the buggy to push round but popped DD in the sling whilst in the hospital building.

The only time we've ever wheeled the buggy into a black cab is when we were coming back from the south coast and the train chucked everyone off due to a fault on the line. So a true emergency to get us to the nearest station where we could pick up another train. I personally wouldn't want to rely on that more regularly as im not happy with the level of protection that a buggy would give (although obviously others will feel differently).

Once she outgrew the cabriofix, we bought a joie stages as it is seatbelt only fitted but we've never actually used it. We've just stuck to public transport since she outgrew the infant carrier.

You might find you dont want to leave your partner to do the 30mins walk home whilst you go in the cab as for some women hormones / biology kicks in and you could feel like you dont want to be away from your newborn for that long.

[Snackarooney]

https://icklebubba.com/products/zira-3-in-1-travel-system-with-astral-car-seat?variant=44527303622940&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwk6SwBhDPARIsAJ59GwdcMCcmt578r3G-ySLLhJjZNhCKUJRhK2Tw4x_yX0jEAaqro7ngGGgaAhWPEALw_wcB

Can't recommend this enough.
Spent literally thousands in pram & car seat for my first learnt my lesson and got this for my second and would get it again in a heartbeat

[VJ88]

Thank you everyone for your suggestions! I'm so grateful. I definitely can't imagine myself being able to let my partner walk baby home while I taxi separately... I'll be too excited and want to be with the baby all the time. I think I'm going to check out some local parenting groups and ask around friends who have had babies in the last few years to see if we could perhaps borrow a seat for a few days just to get us home. I don't want to buy second hand, obviously, but I feel like borrowing from a trusted friend would be a good option.

[BertieBotts]

Just as a couple of people have recommended the Cabriofix - be aware the version available now (Cabriofix i-size) is different to the older Cabriofix, it's still a good seat but it doesn't last anywhere near as long and will be outgrown around 9/10 months by most babies. The older one was fantastic and often lasted until over age 2! But sadly not sold any more. Some shops drop the "i-size" in the listing, but if it has the square head support padding, it's the newer one.

Britax Babysafe Core is fairly long lasting, and so are Cybex baby seats (they have cheaper and more expensive ones). Joie are also pretty long lasting except for i-Snug. Joie Juva/i-Juva is still a good budget option, except that it doesn't fit with the majority of buggy car seat adapters. That's the cheapest thing around (£60 which isn't that cheap - but it's something). I would not touch Nania Trio, which comes up in quite a few places as a cheaper option. Terrible crash test and very outdated design. Nania Beone is OK, though - that got a good crash test result a few years ago, but the only stockist is amazon and it's barely any cheaper than the Joie, if you get the Joie from somewhere like Halfords with the offer on it.

If you get a car seat that clicks into a buggy frame (which Britax, Cybex, Maxi Cosi, Joie [except Juva] and Avionaut all fit into the multi-brand adapters, or you could get a compatible set, like a PP listed) then you could wheel this into the cab and/or unclick the car seat part and strap into a cab with seatbelt.

If you look at the Doona be aware it will only last as long as the baby is in that size car seat, which is about 18 months if you have a bigger one. Whereas another kind of buggy might last your parents 3+ years. Just to bear in mind for comparisons, because I think it ends up quite expensive unless you have a very specific lifestyle need.

Borrowing or asking around friends and family for an outgrown baby seat that they no longer need is a good idea also, just check that they still have all the parts like the newborn insert, as these often go missing and must not be replaced with an alternative. You should also try to get hold of the manual which they might still have, or you can usually download online - check it's for the exact same model, as many have similar names. Don't use a car seat which has missing, replaced or damaged parts, assume every single part is safety critical even if it doesn't seem like it is. Never use one which has been in a crash, even a minor crash. And don't use one which is more than about ten years old - they get hidden wear and tear. Other than this though, a used or borrowed seat is fine if you trust the source

[BertieBotts]

Oh and if you do get a taxi - only strap the rear facing baby seat onto a normal forward facing taxi seat, not the backward facing ones. Otherwise it will be the wrong way around for how it's been designed/crash tested.

[Jafferz]

Get an infant seat - lots mentioned above. Unless your baby is very high centile it should last for a reasonable amount of time and is the safest option.Then practice belting it in in a friend's car so you are confident when the time comes. We also didn't have a car when our son was born but used the infant seat quite a bit for appointments etc.

[Palewildflower]

Buying a travel system is the best value for money and a car seat is included in that. It’s got your wheels, car seat, carry cot and pram. Some come with the extra accessories like a changing bag with changing mat and a rain cover. I just couldn’t see past the travel system. I’m intrigued to know what you’ve got so far. Saying that, I live semi rural and couldn’t cope without a car lol so can’t imagine what it’s like to live in a city where I wouldn’t need my car. When we left the hospital with our daughter 6 years ago no one checked her in the car seat, but when we left with our son 2 years ago a nurse did check that he was strapped in properly.

[Librarybooker]

I can’t recommend a specific car seat because our DC is a teenager now. I just wanted to say I found it really odd that the ward was very bossy and insistent re our DC needing to leave in a car seat. Neither of us has driven for decades. Luckily, my parents lived in the same town and were happy to take us home. We bought a car seat for their car. The midwives and nurses acted like they had never met anyone who didn’t drive and couldn’t entertain the idea of a premature baby leaving the hospital in anything other than a car seat. They checked the straps on every car seat as babies left

[PopandFizz]

I would ask your parents to come and get you. Fitting a car seats is very stressful, even if you practise for the first few times when you move it it's a stressful experience so you don't really be wanting to do that in a taxi and feeling under pressure.

I'd ask a friend or parent to come get you, but also it's common to need to go back to hospital or doctors quite often in the weeks following birth so I'd definitely get your own or ask trusted friends if they have one you can buy.
Second hand is fine aslong as it's fr someone you trust would be honest about any accidents.

[Chewbecca]

Baby seats can be quite tricky to strap in. I would ask for a lift from family or friends ideally, rather than borrowing one.

Or I think it's fine for DH to walk baby home in pram whilst you go in a cab.

[Eastcoastie]

We have an axkid one+ it is suitable from birth and depending on childs height can last until 6/7 its expensive but it saves you buying lots of seats. Its isofix only fitting.

[VJ88]

Thanks again everyone for your suggestions! This is all so helpful and gives me good starting places for research. There is sooo much choice it's hard to know where to begin.

Getting parents to come and fetch us isn't an option, so it'll either be a friend or most likely a taxi home!