Maxi cosi....is it important to have a maxi cosi or will a mother care one do?

[2wwmadness]

Wow! Pg with or 1st dc, and I had no idea how guilty buying things for the baby would make me feel! Do I have to get a maxi cosi? They are alot more expensive than the mother care own brand ones, are they safer? Would I be putting the baby in more danger for some reason? I know that sounds daft, but I just don't understand the price difference? I won't be using it with our pram (I think) we are getting the bugaboo chameleon, and I drive a vw beetle, however the baby will be driven on the motorway and country lanes often. Thanks for your help!

Anyone?

Car seats have to meet minimum safety criteria, so if you're not planning on using it with a pushchair chassis you simply need to get the one that fits your car best.

If you're an ebayer one thing to consider looking at is second hand value. A maxi cosi car seat in good condition can fetch up to £60 but a mothercare own brand is less likely to get a premium.

I've had both a mothercare with my first in my pre-ebay years, which I couldn't find for my second, had a fixed one that tilted and was a bulky pain to use and had a maxicosi with my third which I have loved being able to use with my pram chasis not having to wake little one when running around dropping off and picking up the other two. The mothercare one has just turned up out of my parents loft and is so similar to the maxicosi in plastic thickness and shape that I can't imagine their is any difference in safety between them. As someone else says car seats have safety standards they have to comply to and the price difference is no doubt due to fancy advertising and the odd bell and whistle like a sunshade!

Don't think about just the first child but that baby equipment will also be used for subsequent babies. We are about to use some things for the 4th time. I have a Bug Cameleon and wouldn't be without the Maxi-Cosi to clip on it. For DC1 as we lived overseas and the Maxi-Cosi wasn't approved for use in that particular country so we had a car seat that was permanently fixed in the car. It was a hassle to always have to lift a sleeping baby. Once you have more than one child you and are doing pick-ups/drop-offs being able to move a sleeping child in a car seat is invaluable. I think my record was 5 trips in/outs of the car seat in one sleep!

Safety wise as others have said they all need to meet the same minimum criteria to be approved by British Standards.

Personally I think it is worth the extra. The others may meet the minimum criteria but I've always preferred to get the best one I possibly could. It's about the most important piece of kit you will buy. So Maxi Cosi all the way here.

you don't have to get a maxi cosi no.
I believe the britax seats have a better safety record, and are taller in the shell so should last longer.

personally I really dislike Dorel (who manufacture maxi cosi) so wouldn't buy anything from them!

but I would buy the safest seat you can afford.