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Original poster

Opinions on second hand car seats?

16 replies

Mylittlerainbow · 23/09/2019 18:54

Hi everyone,

I’m currently 18 weeks pregnant and have made a start on buying bits and bobs. My mum has kindly bought us a silver cross travel system which includes a car seat, however if memory serves me correctly (travel system was bought during my first pregnancy which sadly ended at 21 weeks), the lady in the store said that the car seat isn’t suitable for the first few weeks after birth.

I’ve been having a look at other car seats and have seen a post online of a lady selling a second hand from birth car seat along with an isofix base for a very reasonable price. Looks lovely quality. I was just wondering if it would be ok to get a second hand seat or if that could potentially put my baby at risk? I’ve read somewhere that you should get a new car seat for a new baby as they only have a certain amount of shelf life but now I can’t find any info anywhere. Any help would be much appreciated!

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sauchiehall · 23/09/2019 18:56

It's usually recommended that you don't buy a secondhand car seat as you don't know the history of it. Although it might look alright, you can't be certain that it has never been in an accident and could have hidden damage.

sauchiehall · 23/09/2019 18:58

The website childcarseats.org.uk has some advice on it.

ALoadOfTwaddle · 23/09/2019 19:00

I wouldn't. You've no real idea if it's been dropped or in an accident.

Frizzy1986 · 23/09/2019 19:02

If a car seat has been badly dropped or in an accident it is considered no longer safe for use, even though it may look OK externally.

NameChange30 · 23/09/2019 19:03

Check the make and model of the car seat you already have (with the travel system your mum bought). The whole point of those car seats is that they can be used from birth, so I'd be very surprised if it can't.

If it really isn't suitable then I suggest you buy a new Joie Juva which is only £40 (sold by Boots if you want to use/get points) and will be much safer than a second hand one.

BertieBotts · 23/09/2019 19:10

Hi OP.

A car seat is a piece of potentially life saving child safety equipment. When you buy new, you know that:

The car seat has never been in an accident, in the hold of a plane, or dropped (No matter how nice somebody seems - if they don't know this is a problem, they may not think to tell you, and damage can't always be seen.)
The car seat is new and has not been recalled (They don't really expire, but you don't want to use something that's been sat in someone's attic for 15 years either.)
All of the original parts are still there, including the manual (which is very important)
The car seat is set up how it should be set up, items like the harness and/or covers will not have been taken off and potentially put back on incorrectly.
The manufacturer is still in business, and you have both the retailer and manufacturer to go back to if you have any questions or problems with the seat.

Also if you buy in a brick and mortar shop - you can try the car seat in your car to ensure that it is compatible.

These are all potential issues with a car seat you buy second hand.

That said, any car seat which comes with a pram is a from-birth one, and particularly the Silver Cross ones (is it the Simplicity?) ought to be fine. It might be that the lady in the shop was wanting to sell you a more lie-flat car seat as these are supposed to be better for newborns, but it's not necessary to use a lie-flat seat for newborns, it's also OK to just keep time in the car seat very short (up to 30 mins at a time, that includes time in the car, on the floor and on the pram) and only use it when necessary.

Original poster

Mylittlerainbow · 23/09/2019 19:31

Oh wow, thank you so much everyone! I didn’t even think about it being dropped! Feeling so bloody clueless about everything lol. I’ll check the car seat we already have and hopefully that will be OK, if not I’ll go and get one in a shop, definitely not worth penny pinching on that one 👍

OP posts:

Angelinthenightx · 23/09/2019 19:53

Argos were selling a maxi cosi car seat for £70 dont know if that offer is still on we got
one just over 2wks ago.
Best to buy new.

Greatnorthwoods · 23/09/2019 19:57

We have only ever purchased second hand, we have never had any issues

MyDcAreMarvel · 23/09/2019 19:59

Travel systems are all suitable from birth, your mum is obviously confused.

ALoadOfTwaddle · 23/09/2019 22:03

We have only ever purchased second hand, we have never had any issues

How many RTCs have you had with the kids in the car?

Greatnorthwoods · 23/09/2019 22:11

ALoadOfTwaddle

50% of our driving is off road, that hadn’t shaken out any issues.

BertieBotts · 23/09/2019 22:20

Unfortunately you don't know how a seat will perform in a crash just by driving off road (?) you will only find out how it performs if you have a crash. Of course it might be fine, it is not inherently unsafe to use a car seat which has been used before, but you just don't know. If there was a problem with it or a previous invisible weakness etc then god forbid the seat may not perform as it is intended to do.

BertieBotts · 23/09/2019 22:22

If you needed to replace a seatbelt in your vehicle, would you buy a second hand one, or order a brand new part? The car seat is the seatbelt for a child.

Greatnorthwoods · 24/09/2019 01:42

BertieBotts

We have replaced 2 seatbelts that the dog chewed through, we got the new ones from the scrapyard!

ALoadOfTwaddle · 24/09/2019 05:51

50% of our driving is off road, that hadn’t shaken out any issues.

Sadly, you'll only know if there's an issue if they fail to function properly during a crash, causing injury or death to your DC.

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