Choosing a baby or child's car seat
When choosing a car seat for the first time, safety is paramount so never purchase one second hand, even if you know the history. You won’t know for sure if it hasn’t been in an accident and wear and tear can cause the belts to be a problem. We’ve listed points for you to consider: -
- 1. How old is the baby?
- 2. Will the car seat fit all your vehicles?
- 3. Do all or some of your vehicles have front passenger airbags?
- 4. Do all or some of the vehicles have the Isofix system?
- 5. Does the car seat have side impact absorption?
Remember and note that to transport your new born baby from the hospital, they will insist that a correctly fitted car seat is in your vehicle.
The age of the baby is quite obviously important. Car seats are positioned in groups, 0+ is from birth to 12months or up to 13kg’s and always rearward facing (the safest position), 0+1 (combination) is from birth up to four years or up to 18kg’s, rearward and forward facing, group 1 is from nine months to 4years or up to 18kg’s forward facing only, group 2/3 is from 3years to 12years or 15kg up to 36kg’s forward facing only.
Safety in the car seat should always be considered as paramount for any stage in your child’s life so always check the features such as side impact, head restraint, locking indications and comforting fabrics, always remember that the babies head should NEVER ever be higher than the top of the car seat. . Some car seats especially 0+ have semi permanent bases for the vehicle to make it easier for you to install the car seat.
Prior to your purchase make sure the car seat fits all your vehicles, the major brands have internet sites indicating suitability for most vehicles, but REMEMBER if any vehicle has front passenger airbags, inflatable airbags are lethal to babies so either disable the airbag or position the car seat in the rear of the car, ideally diagonal to the driver. Side impact airbags are no problem.
Isofix stands for International Standards Organisation Fix which makes the car seat quicker, simpler and safer to fix, ensuring the very best protection in the sad event of an accident. The system latches on the back of the vehicle which attaches to fixed anchorage points in the vehicle. There are 3 types of Isofix. 1. Universal-3 anchorage points for forward facing Group1 and above. Semi-Universal 2 anchorage points with a supportive leg for rearward Group 0+ and Car Specific 2 anchorage points which can be converted to universal by utilising a top tether strap.
