Buying a car seat is one of the most important purchases you will ever make for your baby.

It will probably first be used to take your new baby home from the hospital. Nervous as you might be about taking your new youngster home – you don’t want to worry about whether you have the right car seat. 

The most important thing to remember when buying you baby their car seat is; safety, safety, safety.

It is easy to look for a seat that has passed European safety standards, but this alone is not enough. (Car seats must conform to the European safety standards ECE R44.03.)

Not all car seats fit all cars and a secure fit is crucial. If you are buying your car seat online, make sure your car is listed as a model that your chosen car seat will fit in to.

You can test the seat at many large superstores , these stores often help with the installation of your new car seat, as will many smaller independent shops.

Children up to and under 1.35metres (and under 11 years) need to use either a car seat or a booster seat.

For more information on the rules that came into force in September 2006 on car seats, see the Child Car Seat section of the Department for transport website

Some car seat safety tips

• NEVER use a child’s car seat on a passenger seat where there is an air bag fitted
• NEVER travel with a child unless they’re strapped into a car seat.
• NEVER strap your child into your seat belt with you – in an accident, you would crush them.
• NEVER  modify a child seat, it’s fitting, the harness, or buckle to make it fit your car.
• NEVER use a rearward-facing car seat on the front passenger seat
• Your child seat should rest firmly on the main seat, with little or no movement.
• Check that you cannot get more than two fingers between the harness straps and your child’s chest: tight enough to be sage, but still comfortable.
• The harness buckle should lie on your baby’s pelvis, not tummy.
• Regularly check fixed car seats to ensure that they haven’t worked loose. Pull on the harness of the seat to test thoroughly.
• NEVER modify a child seat, it’s fitting, the harness, or buckle to make it fit your car.
• NEVER buy a second-hand car seat – as you do not know for sure the history of the seat.
• NEVER use a seat that has been involved in a crash, no matter how minor.
• Watch out for unsecured objects in the car that could be dangerous – in an accident, a tissue box flying off the back shelf has the impact of a house brick.
• If you have to use the front seat with an older child, (who is in a forward-facing seat) push the passenger seat as far back as possible from the dashboard.
• Use a car seat for all journeys, however short. Even if you don’t own a car you’ll still need a car seat for when you get a lift from friends or take a cab.

Fitting the car seat – things to remember

• Read the instructions carefully – remember up to 80% of car seats are fitted incorrectly
• Always try before you buy to make sure it fits your make of car
• Practice fitting theseat a few times before you need to use it, you don’t want to be wanting to take your new baby home from the hospital, but are delyaed because you can’t fit the car seat!
• Fasten the seat into the car as tightly as possible. There should be no slack or loose seatbelts
• Adjust the harnessfor a snug fit against the child’s chest
• When correctlyinstalled, the car seat should not move or slide around excessively

For more information on children’s car seats and safety have a look at the RoSPA website http://www.childcarseats.org.uk/

Great deals on car seats and carriers

Other related articles:
Baby car seat jargon buster.
Baby car seat – quick guide to ISOFIX car seats.

What is ISOFIX? 

• ISOFIX  is a standard for installing child seats into cars and is intended to make fitting child seats quick and simple.
• Car manufacturers and car seat manufacturers build ISOFIX points into their product. You can then easily plug an ISOFIX car seat into ISOFIX points on a car.
• All new cars are fitted with ISOFIX points. But it is important to make sure that any ISOFIX seats that you use in your car are suitable for that car. It is not yet the case that any ISOFIX seat will fit in every car with ISOFIX points.

Why is ISOFIX recommended?
Many car seats are fitted incorrectly – this is dangerous and potentially fatal.
ISOFIX makes it easier, safer and often quicker to fix a car seat correctly and securely into your car.

How does ISOFIX work?
The ISOFIX system works by attaching the car seat directly and securely to the car itself. This is opposed to fitting the car seat with adult seat belts, as in traditional car seats.

Does my car have ISOFIX?

• Your car manual, dealer or manufacturer will tell you whether your car has ISOFIX mounting points.
• Not all cars with ISOFIX anchorage points fitted will necessarily fit your chosen seat.
• Can you return your seat if  it doesn’t fit, or try before you buy? For example, a friend of mine has a car that SHOULD fit my baby’s ISOFIX seat, the manufacturers guidelines say it will – but it doesn’t.

Types of ISOFIX

Universal
Three isofix anchorage points. For forward facing car seats (Group 1 and above).
From Feb 2006, every car produced will have Universal Isofix anchorage points.

Semi-Universal
Two Isofix anchorage points with supportive leg.
It is a car specific solution, so you should refer to a compatibility listing to ensure it fits your car.

Rearward-facing car seats (Group 0+) can only be semi-universal.

Car Specific
Two Isofix anchorage points which can be converted to ‘Universal’ by using a top tether strap.

Do all ISOFIX car seats fit all cars with ISOFIX anchorage points ?

• This is the idea, but it hasn’t happened yet. Check compatibility with your car and the seat you intend to buy.
• Your car manual, dealer or manufacturer will tell you whether your car has ISOFIX mounting points, and the manufacturer of the car seat will tell you which make and models of car will be suitable for each car seat.
• Many of the child seat manufacturers have a fitting list on their website that tells you which cars their seats will fit in.

MaxiCosi and Britax are market leaders in the UK for producing ISOFIX car seats, follow these links for a list of cars their seats are suitable for.

MaxiCosi
http://www.maxi-cosi.co.uk/maxicosi/default.aspx?language=gb-en
Britax
http://www.britax.co.uk

Why is ISOFIX  safer than traditional car seats?
You may have seen reports where most children’s car seats are fitted badly.
As you don’t need to use adult seatbelts to fit the car seat, ISOFIX greatly reduces the risk of fitting the car seat badly.

This was my primary consideration when looking for a car seat. I knew we were going to use one seat in several cars, therefore it seemed sensible to have a car seat that didn’t use adult seatbelts.

Other related articles:
Baby car seat – first things first – safety.
Baby car seat jargon buster.

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