Child escaped car seat…referral to social services

[A2010]

My 2 year old daughter absolutely hates sitting in her car seat and escapes literally every 30 seconds.

My husband took her out today when she escaped her car seat and climbed in to the passenger seat. He should have stopped but he told me because he was nearly there he didn’t. Which has absolutely infuriated me😭

Anyway, someone has obviously reported all this and the police pulled him over. He’s not been fined or anything like that, they just gave him a lecture but also said it was being logged with social services??

Does anyone know what will happen next, I’m absolutely beside myself.

No one said it was safer.

The previous poster suggested that it was “better” to have FF car seat in the front with an air bag. It’s just as dangerous as having a RF one with an airbag.

As PP says, if your husband was v near destination when your 2 YO got out of the car seat how did someone have time to
report this and the police come out so quickly?

RoSPA don't agree. If they did, they would reject front-facing child seats in the front completely the way that they do rear-facing ones. They don't: they list it as an option of last resort.

I have not at any point claimed that travelling in the front is safer than traveling in the back. Children are safest in the back.

The Houdini clip was a success. I took her out this morning and no escaping.

Is the clip legally compliant? If your car caught fire can you still get your child out in one go?

The issue with Houdini is that it's an aftermarket product. Car seats are not allowed to be sold with straps like that for very good reason.

I am relieved that at least one person on this thread seems to understand that in seeking to keep a child 'safe' by preventing them from escaping from their carseat, they are accepting the risk of endangering their child's life in the event of a car fire. But no one on here seems to accept that possibility. It couldn't happen to them...

The chances of a child being injured by a car fire are considerably (really massively) less than the chances of an unsecured child coming to harm in a car crash @Occasional2023 . Esp as there's nothing like discovering your toddler is out of their seat again to distract the driver.

At this moment in time the main risk we have is her escaping her car seat, the risk of a car fire is relatively low. So I’m going to definitely still be using the Houdini if it’s keeping her strapped in.

I don't dispute that it is a much smaller risk, in terms of frequency. However the reality is that if a child is in a burning car and they have been secured so as to prevent them being removed, then the chances are that they will die and in a very horrible way. Risk isn't just about the likelihood or frequency, it is also the fact that the amount of potential harm to the child is such a situation is catastrophic.

....unlike exiting the vehicle via the windscreen in the event of a crash you mean?

Risk = likelihood x severity
Injuries to unsecured children in car crashes are severe.
Crashes are more likely than fire and are also a leading cause of car fires.
In the event of an outbreak of engine fire in a car that hasn't just been in a accident it will be relatively straightforward for the driver to go and free the child. Most toddlers can't free themselves from a car seat even if there is no extra strap.

I hope that's an R129 child seat OP. Make sure the clip is over DD's ribs and not her stomach.

https://www.which.co.uk/reviews/child-car-seats/article/child-car-seat-accessories-afYV16y7R8OC#chest-clips

It is an R129 car seat, I checked before I bought the clip.

No she wasn’t. Are you now going to complain and accuse her of calling you a dog?

It would take her about 5 seconds to get her out of the seat even with the clip on. Car safety is all about reducing risk. A child is at a far greater risk of injury by not being in a car seat than actually being in a car fire where someone could not get them out.
The only way to completely eliminate any risk is to never go in a car.

The strap doesn’t prevent them from being removed, it prevents the child from escaping themselves.

Explain the stevie wonder comment then.

From A emergency removal starting point you should be able to unbelt a child in one click. This removes that.

If the child's not in their seat what will you be removing them from then? The dual carriage way?

But it does mean that the child cannot be released in one click. An outsider trying to assist may be able to get the door open but would then, in a possible smoke filled car not be expecting to have to undo multiple clips. The extra clip will slow things down. I just wish people would acknowledge this key fact.

That is not the point being made.

This! It’s not rocket science. And the fact that there car seats designed that are safety tested to solve the issue should be enough.

@Occasional2023 you seem to be incapable of acknowledging that you are talking about a child who does not stay in the car seat. So, without the strap, your passer by will be groping through the whole car searching for the child - or maybe they won't bother once they find the empty car seat but rather conclude that there's no child on board.