car seat help please

mummyroysof3

hi, we have 3 kids aged 4, 2(over 15kg) and 10 months. Our car is a renault megane senic and we are having some trouble with our current car seats.

the 2 youngest have forward facing seats and eldest has a high back booster.

as the seats in the car arent flat the kids seats dont seam to sit on them properly and its really difficult to fasten the eldest childs seat belt in the middle with the other seats being so wide, we sometimes resort to putting him in the front and i sit in the middle but then hubby moans he cant see out the back propperly

any ideas?
thanks
charlotte

Counting_Pennies_2

I bought a Britax Trio car seat when things started getting tight in the back, it enables you to strap the seat in quite close to the door, and despite the angle it doesn't seem to affect the occupant!

Also I have taken to just using a booster seat £4.99 from Aldi as these seem to be thinner than the high back booster.

Not ideal I know but better than nothing.

I think however your other half will have to put up with not seeing out the back, or put the two younger ones next to one another and you sit by the door.

hth

mummyroysof3

i think the best option, after much research is for 4year old to have a booster with no back, 2 year old to have booster with back ad no harness and 10 month old to have a seat that is suiable 9months-11 years like a high back booster with a 5 point harness, i hope lol

Sagaris

They all sound a bit young/small/light to be in those combinations I think!

Have a look here: http://www.childcarseats.org.uk/types/index.htm for all the latest rules and regulations.

natalie1974

Sagaris wrote: »

They all sound a bit young/small/light to be in those combinations I think!

Have a look here: http://www.childcarseats.org.uk/types/index.htm for all the latest rules and regulations.

Did the OP mention any weights at all ? The HBB is ok for a 4yr old , the FF seat is ok for a 2 yr old . The only one that maybe an "issue" would be the 10 month old , FF seats are from 9kgs (approx18lbs) .

Maybe you should head over to that link and take a look

Sagaris

natalie1974 wrote: »

Did the OP mention any weights at all ? The HBB is ok for a 4yr old , the FF seat is ok for a 2 yr old . The only one that maybe an "issue" would be the 10 month old , FF seats are from 9kgs (approx18lbs) .

Maybe you should head over to that link and take a look

Car seats also go by the weight of the child too - have you checked the link?

I was only trying to be helpful and offer advice - what happened to 'be nice to all moneysavers?' And in my opinion the children do sound a bit young/small to be in those types of seats - alway err on the side of caution I was taught, I've seen the results of children being in the wrong types of seats too often, thank you, hence the link.


It's people like you that stop me posting on internet forums!

mummyroysof3

i made sure they all weighed enough but have had to have a rethink as my 2 year old i thought was 15kg but i weighed her again yesterday as she is 14kg so now, 10 month old is over 9kg but i was abit unsure about using a hbb with harness even though it suitable i prefer the seat he has now that reclines and is a 0-4 seat, so now he is staying in that, 2 year old is having a 9month-11 year seat and 4 year old is staying in hbb, then when 10 month old is older he with have 9month-11yr seat, 4 year old will pass on hbb to 2year old(who will be 3 by then) and he will have booster as he will be over 5 by then

why is it so complicated lol, thanks for all the help
charlotte

mountainofdebt

I may be wrong (so I apologise in advance if I am!) but isn't it illegal to have an under 10 in the front seat?

code-a-holic

I had a scenic when my 3rd was born - i soon sold it and got a 7 seater!
I found britax booster seats witha back are the narrowest. and a maxi cosi 2nd stage car seat is the narrowest base too. But it just was not a safe option. I was not comfortable with the arrangement. They were so close together, and once i took a corner a bit too tight and as one seat tilted it undit the seat belt on the chair next to it.
As mentioned previousl to make them fit you end up pulling the outside seats as close to the edge of the seat to make them fit but then they are closer to the door and closer to a serious injury if you had a side crash.

I am also under the impression that it is illegal to have a child under 10 in a forward facing chair in the front seat. I was stopped by a police car once when i had my 1yr old in the front but that was becuase i had all the seats flat in the back and transporting a wardrobe so they sent me away with a lecture.

Good luck sorting out seats!

Gingham_Ribbon

mountainofdebt wrote: »

I may be wrong (so I apologise in advance if I am!) but isn't it illegal to have an under 10 in the front seat?

No, but there are some rules:

Q: Is it legal for my child to travel in the front passenger seat?
A: Yes. If your child is aged under 12 years they must be using an appropriate child restraint, unless they are over 135cm in height. Once a child is taller than 135cm, you may move a child out of the booster seat or booster cushion, regardless of their age, although they must still legally use the adult belt. It is the drivers responsibility to ensure that every passenger under 14 is restrained within the law.
However, if a child is in a rearward facing child car seat, and the front passenger seat is protected by an active frontal airbag, then it is illegal to carry your child in the front.
Although the law does allow you to carry children in the front (with the one exception above), it is safer for children to travel in the rear.

viktory

Counting_Pennies wrote: »

I think however your other half will have to put up with not seeing out the back

If the OP's husband is the driver, then is not acceptable for him not to be able to see out of the rear window.