And for the record, this is what one of the ladies who runs the Essex Centre has said (please note that this is her personal view and not that of The Essex in Car Safety Centre).
The original statement is first, and the rebuttal after......
STATEMENT
Eurotest crash test results confirm that these seats are no safer than the better front facing seats.
ANSWER
You have on many occasions had reason to challenge ?Which?s? views on their test results, I spoke to xxxxx when the scathing reports came out on rear facing seats in ?Which? and he admitted to me that the results printed are for the worst case i.e. a seat that can be used rear and forward; so for the rear facing seats when tested the results printed are for when they are used forward facing. Don?t forget they also mark down for ease of fit but this has no bearing on the safety of the seat.
STATEMENT
In consequence claims that these seats are "5 times safer" appear to be totally unfounded.
ANSWER
Untrue have you looked at the statistics? Do you understand child physiology? Infant carriers are safer because they absorb 95% of the impact, it doesn?t suddenly become safer to be forward facing at 9mths, in a rear facing seat the child?s head neck and spine (the most venerable parts) are held in alignment, but forwards although the body is harnessed what happens to the head (look at the video on ytube)
STATEMENT
It can be argued with some justification that Scandinavian accident statistics are better than ours purely because of the size & brands of cars that they drive.
ANSWER
What utter rubbish, we drive Volvos and Saabs here, and they drive fords there; they are made in the same factory to be sold here and in Sweden. Where did this research come from?
STATEMENT
Retailers find it significantly more difficult to fit a rear facing stage 2 seats than a forward facing seats.
ANSWER
Retailers find it difficult to fit any seat!!! It?s a matter of training, I know I?m considered an ?Expert? but I find it just as easy to fit either type, it?s simply a matter of being shown. Who have you spoken to?
STATEMENT
If sold second hand the risks of these seats being fitted in a dangerous manner are considerable.
ANSWER
No more so than a forward facing seat! Any second hand seat could be considered dangerous perhaps more so forward facing as the child is not cradled into the seat.
STATEMENT
Unless you have a very large car these seats are likely to impact on either the driver?s seat or the front passenger?s seat.
ANSWER
What evidence do you have to show this? We have fitted these seats into ford KA?s do you consider that a large car.
STATEMENT
Reports suggest that children do not enjoy traveling in these types of seats.
ANSWER
What reports? Who did they ask? Children do not like to be harnessed into the seats! So would that be a good reason not to use the harness. As adults we make decisions for our children to keep them safe, sometimes they may not like our choices but we are the adults after all!! Incidentally I have not heard of anyone saying they object, Swedish children don?t mind and if it?s the way they have always traveled they don?t know any difference
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STATEMENT
They are expensive.
ANSWER
The prices start at £195 how much is the Jane Exo? £229 oh of course the Exo is ISOfix always more expensive you can buy the Recaro Polaric for just over £200 have you looked at the Family fix for Maxi Cosi with the Pearl Group 1 seat the base and seat would set you back £320 hardly a bargin.
STATEMENT
As far as we can find out, these seats are NOT tested in high speed rear impact crash tests. A rear impact in these seats is the same as a head on accident in a front facing seat.
ANSWER
No seat is tested in a high speed rear crash (It?s not a real test) in a forward impact the speeds of the vehicles are added together in a rear impact the opposite is true, so if one car is traveling at 30mph and it hits another at the same speed the impact speed is 60mph! How many vehicles on the road do you know of that reverse at 60mph!!! A front impact is always more severe and more common, no-one is protected from all impacts we can only guard against the worst case scenario!
STATEMENT
Only "specialist fitters" are trained to fit these seats and research clearly shows that parents are not specialists.
ANSWER
So if the ?specialist fitter? shows the parent the correct way of fitting they will more likely to get it right get it right. It?s all about the training and the motivation to get it right, most of the parents I meet with the right information get it correctly fitted. How many rear facing seats have you checked and found to be wrong.
STATEMENT
They are incredibly difficult to move from car to car.
ANSWER
No there not! If you get tethers fitted into all the cars the seat will be fitted into there is no difference and if the seat is ISOfix it doesn?t use tethers so is no different to fitting a forward facing seat