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Original poster

Bebecar In-Car Safety Kit

10 replies

Taffybird · 04/08/2011 19:40

I've been loaned a Bebecar pushchair/carrycot set with the in-car safety kit for securing the carrycot on the back seat. The trouble is, I've got the instructions for the pushchair but not for the carrycot or the safety kit. The link to the manual I need on the Bebecar website is not working.

Does anybody else have this system? How do you attach the baby's safety belt to the base of the carry cot? And how do you secure the cot to the seatbelts? I've been tinkering with it all day to try and work it out but it's defeated me.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

OP posts:
SecretNutellaFix · 04/08/2011 19:54

I'll be honest- I wouldn't use a carrycot as in car transport for a baby. Especially as you don't have the manual. How old is the system as well?
I would choose a rear facing car seat all the way.

thisisyesterday · 04/08/2011 20:00

carrycots are really not advised tbh. they just are not as safe as a proper car seat

so my advice would be to not use it in the car at all

Original poster
Taffybird · 04/08/2011 20:56

That's what I thought too, until I did the research. While carrycots don't have the same level of impact protection, young babies and newborns benefit from being able to lie completely flat. This is why we are told not to allow young babies to remain in a rear-facing car seat for more than two hours in any one day. It's bad for their spinal development and their breathing.

I do already have a normal rear-facing car seat as well. It's not that I want to use a carrycot instead of a car seat and it's possible I never will use it, but all my family are at least 4 hours away and I have to be prepared in case it's ever necessary to make a long journey while the baby is very small. I wouldn't be happy about her being in an ordinary car seat for that long.

The system I have is three years old. Only my little nephew has ever used it and it's never been in an accident. Of course - if I had any concerns that it might be unsafe and/or illegal I would never use it.

OP posts:
SecretNutellaFix · 04/08/2011 21:00

Seriously- the only time a lie-flat car seat would be of any use would be if you are driving weekly between Edinburgh and Cardiff.
Seeing as the recommendations for driving safely say to take a break every 2 to 2.5 hours anyway make them a longer break of half an hour to 45 minutes. Yes it prolongs the journey, but you can take the baby out of the car seat so they can stretch out a bit.

Original poster
Taffybird · 04/08/2011 21:35

Oh I'm not bothered about prolonging the journey. And it looks like this may be my only option. I certainly won't be using any equipment that I've had to guess how to fit in my car.

OP posts:
TruthSweet · 04/08/2011 22:00

I'd be surprised if a baby could last the full 4 hours with out a feed, needing a cuddle, or a nappy change so even if you use the rear facing car seat (which I would strongly suggest you do) you will be stopping the car frequently. As others have said lie flat car seats are great in terms of safety and I know in the US they are only used for prem babies who fail the car seat test but no longer require hospital treatment. As soon as the baby is able to pass the car seat test they go into a rear facing seat.

I have fond memories of a trip to Cornwall from the SE (pre-baby it took us 6-7 hours) it took us 10+ hours in very light traffic and we stopped at every car park, service station, pub and lay-by on the way. On the way back DD1 fell asleep and DH just drove all the way until Fleet Services which took about 3 hours (he kept to the speed limit but didn't do his usual 58mph for fuel economy). When we got to Fleet Services I insisted on waking DD1 up as I was worried about her being in the seat for so long, so I woke her to feed her and it then took us another 3 hours to 30-odd miles because we stop umpteen million times before we got home.

thisisyesterday · 04/08/2011 22:03

i think the risks of being in an accident in a carrycot far outweigh any benefit of lying flat to be quite honest with you

Original poster
Taffybird · 04/08/2011 22:34

Well yes, she'll need to be fed and changed at frequent intervals. Thanks for all the input on the advisability of car seats over carry cots.

Still could do with the instructions for the equipment I've got, though, if anybody has them. Even if I never use it, I'd just feel better knowing how it's all supposed to work.

OP posts:
Original poster
Taffybird · 24/03/2012 08:41

Apologies for resurrecting an ancient thread but I wanted to mention to anyone who has a similar problem that the Glasgow Pram Centre are incredibly helpful when it comes to queries about baby transport and safety. They contacted Bebecar, got hold of the instructions and posted them to me.

As it turned out (and as I suspected) we never needed to use it anyway, but it was reassuring to know that in a pinch, we had a legal alternative to the carseat.

OP posts:
swazn3 · 02/08/2012 12:01

Hi Taffybird really need your help with a bebecar car kit.. Can you inbox me Suzanne x

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