Car seat advice for non-drivers

[Paaseitjes]

Please help out a new parent overwhelmed by choice!

We live overseas in a city where we will genuinely never need a car. However, my ILs live in rural England. If there is a bus, it's probably pulled by a donkey. I want to order a car seat to their house so they can pick us up safely from the airport. I didn't realise how many were on the market and a lot are different to what is available here, so I can't really go to a shop to look. Is there a seat that meets some or best still all of my requirements?

• multi age: baby will be 9m on first trip. I think it's safer to have an adaptable seat even if its a bit less safe/comfortable than to find he's grown too much in the airport carpark.
• easy to fit, ideally with a seat belt rather than base so that it can be switched between cars, and so that we can fit it without much practice/6m later when the instructions have got lost.
• not too big since there will be 4 adults in the car and it needs to be stored.
• ideally not mega bucks since it will only be used 2-3 weeks per year.

I know MN will slaughter me for saying so, but it doesn't have to be the absolute safest model since it's only going to be used 2-3 weeks per year. An idiot-proof less-safe model will be safer in the long run than a super-safe super-complicated one that we mess up and baby outgrows.

https://www.halfords.com/baby-and-child/car-seats/child-car-seats/cosatto-zoomi-group-123-car-seat---beep-beep-411443.html?gl=1111bnkq2q2upMQ...gs*MQ..&gclid=EAIaIQobChMInLPvv7LcjgMVZYFQBh3OVCwmEAAYASAAEgIIPPDBwE&gclsrc=aw.ds&gbraid=0AAAAADrJx6y1GdH0EZFnm8kswRdas0ZXf&plpPlacement=1

This seems to tick all your boxes.

It doesn't give you the option to rear face - which for many would be important still at 9 months - but not all.

Ooh, thanks! I'll take a look. I didn't get anywhere with Halfords, but I think I didn't understand the filters

We live in London with no car but we have two car seats in my parents car for when we are visiting. Do they have an independent retailer near them? We basically sent my DM and DF to the retailer, they installed and fitted the seats for my DPs and we paid for it. Then noone had to worry about getting it right or wrong. We basically googled "independent car seat retailer + nearest city to DPs". It just stays in DMs car and we only use her car for outings when we are visiting. She never uses the back seat anyway so it doesnt make a difference to her.

We ended up with a Britax Max Safe Pro which is a great seat and will last DD until she is around 6yo based on her current height centile. Last up to 125cm.

Im also on a FB group called "Bumps to Booster - UK car seat support" (or something like that) and the Graco Slimfit is recommended a lot on there. Its a seatbelt only install but its only rear facing to 105cm so depends on whether you have a v tall baby as to whether you would be happy to turn forward facing at that point.

Whatever you do, please don't let them go to Halfords for any advice. They are notoriously poor.

I think it’s the law to rear face until 15 months. We have the Joie stages which fits in my parents convertible and a ford Ka. My daughter actually finds it more comfortable than our ‘super safe’aim car seat. It will also rear face and forward face. Fixes with a seat belt and I can carry it easily

Joie stages will be perfect. It'll rear face long enough and last til your DC is out of car seats.

https://www.halfords.com/baby-and-child/car-seats/child-car-seats/joie-stages-group-0plus%2F1%2F2-child-car-seat---coal-811072.html

Do you know how long car seats are mandatory in the uk? I think I failed at the filters because I was looking at the baby seat shaped ones, assuming that they then go to a smallish booster at 4 (based on my >30 year old memories!) It hadn't occurred to me that we'd need a giant seat like that at 10! The ILs will be over 80 then, so we probably won't need it anyway.

I'm already a bit worried about over 70s driving my baby on rural roads, but I haven't driven since before covid so would be even more dangerous and British taxi drivers terrify me, plus I doubt they'd take us that far.

Really need to correct you - it’s illegal to forward face before 15 months!

12 years old or 135cm tall, whichever is first. This might help https://www.gov.uk/child-car-seats-the-rules

@Sunnyshoeshinethat would be ideal, but it will be 6 months between visits. My ILs are lovely but they would probably also get sold the most super duper expensive one that they couldn't lift and none of us could install either seat or baby! They wouldn't recognise that it needs to be really simple for safety

Thanks!

How ever do Halfords get away with selling something so clearly illegal?! Now I'm even more worried!

If it was legal under the old R44 regulation, they are allowed to sell them until stock is all gone. But all new seats need to be under the new R129 regulations. What's even more disgraceful is the website says "forward facing for front or back seat". Its so dangerous to put a forward facing child in a front seat. I will never trust their advice when their website has things like this.

In that case, sounds like graco slimfit or joie stages will be your best option as they lift in and out and just fasten in with the seatbelt. We have the stages for on holiday. Its pretty chunky though - what car do your DPs have? You might struggle to get 4 adults in if its a small one.

They've got a small SUV so it should fit. DH is very skinny so he can go in the middle!

If I'm honest, I'm dreading the trip. What if baby is car sick, howls all the way etc. Don't even get me started on baby proofing the house and being stuck somewhere in the middle of British winter where I can't even go for a walk because there are no pavements, the roads are flooded and there is nothing but sheep anyway. I used to just read the long afternoons away, but with the baby is going to be difficult not to go mad! They really really want us to visit though. We're only in Europe but the distance to the airport in the UK makes it hard to go just for 2 nights. I may be redirecting my dread about visiting onto the carseat issue!

Get on FB and see if there is a mums or parents group for your DMs area. I was amazed by how much baby stuff there was going on that I had no idea about as id never paid attention or been in that community. Things in village halls or libraries etc. It will really help break up the week! If its really rural, you could also consider keeping a proper off road style buggy at their house to make it easier to get around. The out n about nipper buggies are really good off road and you can usually get them second hand.

Its so dangerous to put a forward facing child in a front seat.

Isn’t that only if there’s an airbag? I don’t know, it’s a long time since I’ve needed car seats, but I thought that car seats in the front were ok if the airbag was disabled.

OP, I would get your in laws to go somewhere like Halfords and get them to fit the seat for you. It will not be fun trying to do it yourselves for the first time in an airport, and you are better off with someone who is trained and can see the car the seat is going to be used in. Give your in laws the names of a couple of the seats that have been recommended here and then let them deal with it.

https://www.childcarseats.org.uk/choosing-using/faqs/#faq7Good answers here about front vs rear facing in the front seat. Basically if rear facing in the front seat, airbag needs to be off. If front facing in the front seat, the airbag can be very dangerous and you need to think about the advice here.

Thanks, but they'd be quite offended if we dumped then for a baby group. We also have no way of travelling away from the house without them driving. There's nothing within walking distance apart from a dead commuter village, DH doesn't drive, I'm a (genuinely!) shit driver due to lack of practiceand there are no buses or taxis.

I'm a city kid, but I'm always amazed at posters saying they want to move rurally for kids. I'm convinced the complete lack of independence as a teen is partly responsible for DH's terrible mental health as an adult. Every part of his life was subject to parental approval. He couldn't even buy illicit chocolate because someone would have had to drive him to the shop! He can't drive now because of OCD which makes him panic

I know you said super safe wasn't a priority but cossato have a really poor reputation.

Agree Joie Stages or even a Steadi if you don't need it to change to a high back booster. We had the Steadi and it's easy to fit and not bulky

Joie stages is great but it is a fairly bulky seat! Can be rear or forward facing, belted in. Can be used as a booster seat too one baby is old enough.

it is still legal to forward face at 9 months if the seat was produced under the old regulations. New isize seats it’s illegal to forward face before 15 months.

I wouldn't use a Zoomi for a 9mo - it's essentially a backless booster with a back on it that the only purpose of is to attach straps to. In terms of cost and size you can get much better. There might be a time and place for the Zoomi but this is not it IMO.

In your position I'd either do a combo of two seats - Halfords Impala or Graco Extend r129 or Joie Tilt for now until whenever you feel you prefer forward facing, and then Cosatto On the Go or Maxi Cosi Nomad XL, either of those are a good option. (If baby is smaller for age you could also stick with the first seat until they are about 4 and then change to a cheap or foldable high back booster).

If you really really don't want to do two seats, see if your parents can borrow any rear facing seat for your 9mo and then get one of the folding ones for later.

The problem is all the seats which combine rear facing and high back booster are enormous or expensive.

Oh, if you're in mainland Europe there is a similar folding seat by Kiddikraft I think Fix2go or something. It's cheaper but not available in the UK. But you could buy locally and bring as hand luggage apparently.

For the love of God, do not put a 9 month old baby in a forward facing car seat!!!

R44 is still legal in the UK. It's only in Europe that they had a year to sell off all remaining stock. It's perfectly legal for Halfords to sell the Zoomi, but it's an incredibly outdated and basic type of seat and I wish Cosatto would retire it.

For rural roads I'd definitely want rear facing. They tend to be comfier to sit by as well because the adult hips and shoulders aren't next to the wider parts of the seat.

Front seat can be tricky as you must legally have visibility in side mirrors. You can use a towing mirror to achieve this but it has to be fitted in a legal way (not sure of the details myself).

Please DO NOT buy this seat. It’s absolutely not suitable or LEGAL to forward face a 9 month old.

Unfortunately it is legal. Though I agree there are much better options for a 9mo particularly on rural roads with questionable driving.