Kidfix recommended but…

[AtLeastThreeDrinks]

Am I right to think that the Britax Romer Kidfix i-Size is unsuitable for my 18kg, 107cm 3y4m child because it has a single shoulder seatbelt rather than a 5-point harness? I've been recommended it by an acquaintance whose child is the same age and similar build, but as I understand it children should be in the 5-point harness until they're 25kg or 135cm tall, which would rule that out. Is that correct? I'm in a bit of a headspin looking at recommendations and reviews.

We have also been looking at the Graco Energi i-size and the Joie Bold. Can anyone shed any light on the best option?

We just want something comfortable and safe that'll last until it's no longer needed. Due to various incidents (none, I hasten to add, were our fault!) we've been through so many car seats so I really want to get this one right!

A 5 point harness can only be used (forward facing) until 18kg.

Thank you. Can you use a 5-point harness for longer if rear-facing? Or is that irrelevant if the child is over the height limit?

Hi OP,
Your child is a little young to be considering using a HBB with the 3 point seatbelt. They are unlikely to be mature enough to sit still and not play with the seat belt. Whilst they would be ok height and weight wise, they would be safer in a 5 point harness. At 3 years, they would be safer rear facing for a little longer, but I’m sure @bertiebotts will be able to advise on a safe FF seat.

The law in the UK states that children should be rear facing in an appropriate seat until 15months (although there are still some seats that allow babies to be turned FF earlier) and then to remain in an appropriate car seat until they are 12 years old or 135cm, which ever comes earlier. Please note that these are the minimum based on the law, and that it’s safer for children to remain rear facing a lot longer. There are ERF seats available which comfortably allow children to RF until 36kg or 125cm (the average height of a 7 year old). With respect to HBB, some European countries recommend continuing to use them until a child reaches 150cm.
In my mind, it should never be a race to get your child out of a car seat, yet I regularly see children as young as 6 on the school run travelling without a car seat.

That's not quite right, there are both rear facing and forward facing seats which harness past 18kg. (This seat doesn't have a 5 point harness at all).

In terms of whether this seat is suitable for your LO, technically it's legally approved for them to use - and your acquaintance has probably opted for this specific model because of the extra strap between the legs and the pad for the shoulder belt, all of which make it feel a bit more secure, but you're right that at age 3, it is more protective to have them in a 5-point harness. It's not really clear when exactly that changes - there is some evidence that size plays a part so 105cm/18kg is better to change than 100cm/15kg (which is the minimum). A lot of people give age 4 as the age to swap but I am not sure what this is based on exactly. In general it makes sense to go by your LO's temperament and your gut feeling - do you think he'd sit properly in a seatbelt? It sounds like you would prefer him to be in a 5-point harness, and I do think that's likely a good idea at 3.

Since your LO is over 105cm, you have to rule out most i-size/R129 seats I'm afraid, including the Graco Energi. The harness limit on that is 105cm or 22kg, whichever comes first. Since he's past the 105cm, he's too tall for it.

Joie Bold is a good option. You can use the harness up to 25kg and it extends right up to the max of the seat so is unlikely to be outgrown by height.

You could also look at ERF seats up to 125cm which generally have a 25kg or higher limit too. You would then need to buy a high back booster seat later on, but these aren't as expensive as the ones with harness so it's not such a big outlay. It's likely that a standalone HBB seat will have a bit of a better belt fit than the Joie Bold used in HBB mode.

If your son continues on the same growth line, he'll probably reach 125cm at around 5.5 years, so you are looking at about 2 years' use from an ERF seat. Britax Safe-Way M or Axkid Move are the cheapest ones here - both under £200 (appreciate that is still a lot for 2 years' use though if you don't have a sibling to hand it down to)

The only other option is to look at R129 certified 123 type seats (which convert from 5 point harness to HBB) but use the harness past the height limit. This is technically not a legally approved use of the seat, but I've seen various things suggesting that it's not a safety critical issue to exceed a standing height limit, provided the child is under the weight limit specified and has a good physical fit in the seat (ie, their shoulders still fit under the headrest, and the 5-point harness is at or above the level of their shoulders.)

If you do this I wouldn't personally go for the Graco, I would be happy to do it with a Britax seat though and I did - my DS2 used the harness in the Britax Advansafix i-size, which has a limit of 102cm, up to 109cm in height. Britax have Evolvafix and Advansafix Pro out now which are certified up to 21 or 22kg and 105cm, then turn into HBBs. However you'd want to try the seat out in a shop first I think to check he'd even fit into the harness.

Overall in your situation I'd go for Joie Bold.

Sorry I crossposted with Family :) The only bit I was disagreeing is the idea you can't harness over 18kg FF - you can :)

Sorry, missed your question about rear facing over the height limit. If your child is over the height limit, then the seat shouldn’t be used as it won’t have been tested with a dummy of that height. That being said, if they’re only just over the height limit but well under the weight limit, then I might continue to use it, but I would be actively looking to replace it as soon as possible.

OK that was really wordy.

Just get the Joie Bold.

as I understand it children should be in the 5-point harness until they're 25kg or 135cm tall, which would rule that out. Is that correct?

I think you've misunderstood this a bit - for most children these stats would be somewhere around 8/9 years old, which is much older than most children in the UK use a 5 point harness, and I think the Joie Bold is actually the only seat on the UK market which would even accommodate this - and from a friend who comes originally from Australia (where they really do harness up to age 8!) she tried to use the Bold with her son for as long as possible, and he was complaining by about age 6 that the straps were uncomfortable between his legs so she changed to seatbelt mode.

Most children in the UK stop using a 5 point harness somewhere around 3.5 - 4 years old. Current best practice advice is to wait until around age 4 minimum to switch. It makes sense to stay in a 5 point harness a bit longer if you can, but it doesn't need to be up to age 8 and you will likely struggle to find a UK spec seat which can do this.

You might be thinking of the combo 25kg + 125cm which is the minimum to use a backless booster cushion under the most recent regulation, and 135cm being the minimum to go without any car seat at all as Family said. But these are fairly arbitrary limits; it's thought to be beneficial to keep using a high back booster from the time you change out of the 5 point harness until the child can sit well with an adult seatbelt. There are a few scenarios where the booster cushion makes sense as an inbetween stage between HBB and seatbelt, but that's ages away for your LO and booster cushions are always cheap anyway.

Thank you so much for your detailed responses, that's incredibly helpful and you've eased my confusion! The Joie Bold does sound like the best option as you're right, I'd prefer to keep him harnessed for as long as possible – he's a wriggler. I'd also prefer to keep him rear-facing, but we currently have two car seats in our car and neither I nor my H can have the seat as far back as is optimal to drive due to space, so I suspect we'll have to go for FF simply to all fit in the car. I'll discuss the options with him and perhaps go to a centre to check how they fit in the car.

Thanks again, this has been very useful and I'm grateful to you for taking the time to respond and explain in such detail.

If you would prefer rear facing, it might be worth looking to see if you have an ERF specialist near you, because the 125cm limit seats do take up less space front to back than the Isofix ones which is probably what you have now if it's maxed out at 105cm/18kg? If you have two car seats in the car then it sounds like you'd be able to hand it down when your eldest has outgrown it anyway and then you can get whatever HBB is good in 2-3 years' time.

But the Joie bold is also a good choice so whatever works really 🙂