What to do with used car seat

[Lola2321]

I’ve got a newborn car seat (a good brand) which we used and our kids have outgrown it. I’ve no idea what to do with it! I’ve tried -
asking fire service whether they need it for training and they have enough atm
asked women refuge if they would like it - they wouldn’t
whilst I’ve not tried to sell on fb, similar ones just aren’t selling

has any got any other suggestions?

I believe you are supposed to cut off the straps and take it to the tip. Second hand car seats aren't recommended

How old is it?

It’s just over 2 years old. Used in total for a year.

Put it on a free fb page in your area it will get snapped up

Oh, then I'd stick it on Marketplace for a cheaper price than the ones that haven't sold. Make sure you include the total use time/rough date purchased, the model, the instruction book or link to product page and say that it's never been in an accident, smoke and pet free home (if of course these things are true!) and set it back up for a newborn to take the picture.

Or ask around friends/family if anyone needs one for a spare. If no luck, you could ask your health visitor if she could pass it on to a family in need?

There is nothing morally wrong with selling or passing on a second hand car seat if you know that it is still in good condition and hasn't been in any accidents.

I gave my old one away on Freecycle. It was barely used (we didn't have a car at that time so only used for occasional lifts). I wasn't prepared to send a perfectly good seat to landfill.

Who says this? I can't find this advice anywhere.

Definitely give away or resell we were gifted a friends old one and use it when we give lifts to our daughters friends. So useful to have.

I chucked mine that was back in the 00's though I've since heard fire stations take them for training.

There's a really good scheme in the US you take your old car seat in to be recycled and can get a reduction off next size up. I only know because they put a vid on tiktok. But we really need something like that here.

Be good to have that scheme here!

sadly our fire station don’t need any more for training.

The only place I’ve seen this being discussed is in TikTok - and it’s a toxic place for car seat safety.

Put it free on FB, it’ll be snapped up.

I’ve cut the straps of an old but still in date infant carrier and taken it to the tip, as unfortunately despite storing it in its original box in our spare room, the straps had mould on them so it was unsafe to use. I’m glad I cut the straps though as I had two different people at the tip wanting to take it despite me telling them it was unsafe and that I’d cut the straps.

OP - you could try giving it away on marketplace or see if you have any baby banks near you. The one near me takes car seats as long as they haven’t been in an accident and they’re less than 5 years old.

The advice to destroy a seat by cutting the straps is supposed to apply to a seat that you know is unsafe e.g. it's been in a crash, too old, worn out, damaged etc. I think it's just weird extremely-online thinking that makes people suggest it for any seat you're getting rid of.

It doesn't make any sense to destroy a perfectly good, safe seat. It's true that it's advised to buy new rather than second hand, but some people will buy second hand seats either because it's what they can afford or for eco reasons or because they feel comfortable with the risk or maybe don't know the risks, and it's better that they have the option of something decent rather than a lot of the crap out there. People list any old thing on FB marketplace - 20+ year old relics, foreign seats, seats with no covers, seats with the straps routed completely wrong, seats absolutely coated in mould 🤢 often listed as "Used - Good"

Car seats expire so yiu need to check what the manufacturer date on the seat is and the expiry on your particular one it might just need to be binned .

Is it seatbelt compatible? I acquire (from trusted friends) seats that can be used without a base. They are then used for babies being taken into care from the hospital. Your local unit, especially if you can communicate with someone in whichever team looks after vulnerable mothers, will probably be very grateful.