Rear facing car seat - After 9 months old?

LoopyLu

I went to https://www.securatot.co.uk
It's a company run by a couple of mums.
My son is 16 months old, big lad and uses a Britax Multi-tech. I shall be going back to them in a few months for another one for my baby girl.

Retro_Bunny

In case OP is interested, Halfords and Babies R Us are offering the Britax First Class Plus range at up to £60 off at present (if you're not picky on colours). First Class Plus is a Birth to 4 year old 0+ which will go rear facing until they are 20lbs (or more), then front facing from 20 lbs until 40lbs.

Babies R Us at £99.99 from £159.99: http://www.toysrus.co.uk/Babies-R-Us/Travel-and-Pushchairs/Car-Seats-and-Boosters/Group-0-and-1/Britax-First-Class-Plus-Car-Seat-in-Elena(0083457)

Halfords at £99.99 from £159.99: http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_productId_877869_langId_-1_categoryId_165763

Others colours are available on both sites at varying prices. HTH

Remember Quidco (4%), TCB or other cashback site.

Sweet_cheeks

Hi BaileyB,
I too had this problem a couple of years ago when looking for a rear facing carseat for my LO. I remember going into a major baby store and asking one of the 'trained carseat specialists' about rear facing group 1 seats. She looked at me as if i was dumb! and proceeded to say that 'baby needs room to spread and kick there legs around so forward facing is good for them'(!) I asked if she knew of any brands and if she knew that they are actually safer?...She waffled on about something or other and I realised there was no reasoning with her.
I left the store calmly but inside i was fuming. Ignorance is bliss!
I called a friend who had kids and asked her if she knew any stockists, she told me she'd been told that once their feet touch the back they can break their legs and thats when its time to turn them round and change carseats, so she too followed the masses. I replied something along the lines 'well i'd rather deal with a broken leg than a broken neck' I wondered if i was being a super sensitive first time mum. Why wasnt it common knowledge over here (in 2008)? (Along with another bugbear of mine young babies in their carseat attached to buggies.....). But in the end it boils down to knowledge is power. I wasnt being crazy.With it you can make an informed choice.. I did lots of research. Read loads of reviews, polls, crash test results, policies etc.
In the end i had to buy one from abroad, i got a Britax one from canada (my dad was going there for business). I saw it on the britax usa website. I wanted my child rear facing for as long as poss and he was well past 3 if not 4 years old. Then i turned it round to forward facing.
I love my convertible carseat. It was an investment i think maybe around £250ish± when converted from dollars but it meant i've only had to buy 1 carseat as the american weight limits are larger. Plus it was much cheaper than the pound equivalent over here.
i also found at the time a safety testing website that listed whether or not a car seat model would be fit in your car so i knew it was compatible before i purchased it. Plus the britax website has videos showng you how to correctly fit your carseat using the different methods available. It came with a booklet that stays attached to the seat. It is also bigger and roomier than uk carseats. I think the laws over there are more prescriptive with regards to car seat safety so it seems to have a higher safety spec too compared to what i had found on the market over here when i bought it.
I would definitely find a rear facing carseat, the multiple real! reclining function in mine was pure joy so you know they sleep comfortably when they are toddlers and can adjust to suit them.
I hope you find one i really do believe that they are safer.
I mean even as an adult sitting in a rear facing seat on a train (or maybe i guess any moving vehicle?) as opposed to sitting facing the direction a train is moving is supposed to have benefits as you are likely to fare better in a collision (my sister laughed when i told her that little nugget of info, and no i didnt research that! i only learned of it accidentally in a documentary a few months ago)

In Scandinavian countries i think their kids are supposed to be rear facing in cars till 4 by law! They have some really cool carseats. I remember seeing a photo of what looked like 4/5 yr old in a rear facing carseat that was like nothing i'd seen before. It was like a raised proper seat but in reverse, so she was sitting upright comfortably with her feet dangling downwards towards the seat of the car, almost like a highchair i guess. I'll try and post the pic if i can find it cos i dont think i'm describing it well.
Anyway good luck with your search

RadoJo

Sweet_cheeks wrote: »

Why wasnt it common knowledge over here (in 2008)? (Along with another bugbear of mine young babies in their carseat attached to buggies.....).

What is the safety issue with carseats and buggies? Did a quick google, and naturally got loads of shopping sites! I'd be grateful if you could point me in the right direction...:)

GobbledyGook

RadoJo wrote: »

What is the safety issue with carseats and buggies? Did a quick google, and naturally got loads of shopping sites! I'd be grateful if you could point me in the right direction...:)

I think it's to do with the length of time people end up leaving the baby in the car seat for.

I certainly know a couple of people who forgot about the 2 hour thing when they were "just" doing the school run, popping to the supermarket for the monthly shop etc.

mummyroysof3

i think being in a car seat for to long is bad for theirs backs

Sagaris

Tiny babies should not be left in car seats for longer than 30 minutes I was told on a training course this week - unless they are the lie flat carry cot type - which I have never thought were as safe as the conventional rear facing ones!

Babies are safer travelling rearward for as long as possible but current seats will only last until the baby is 28lb, then they move up to the Group 1 seats or turn the seat round (in the case of a combination seat).

I questioned the 30 minute rule and was told that tiny babies cannot mantain their airway and the oxygen levels in the blood can drop, and this had been linked to ADHD (news to me and I've been working in this field for 14 years). I asked what parents should do if they have to travel for longer than 30 minutes when the baby is tiny - 'they shouldn't' was the reply. Not exactly helpful!

GobbledyGook

Be interesting to see the research for that 30 minute theory if they publish it. That's a massive difference from the current 2 hour suggestion.

Sagaris

GobbledyGook wrote: »

Be interesting to see the research for that 30 minute theory if they publish it. That's a massive difference from the current 2 hour suggestion.

Exactly! If I remember the research was done by a Japanese company, Aprica (I think) - who just happen to make lie flat car seats!

Until I see some independent research from an accredited source I won't hold my breath - the ante natal classes I speak to have enough to worry about without timing car journeys! :rotfl:

Tigsteroonie

Just to add on the 30m/2hr argument, we were told by hospital Physiotherapists that the 2hour recommendation was for use of the chair within a moving car, as it was related to vibrations fed up via the car seat/baby seat to the child. We specifically asked because Andrew was really too small to be restrained safely in a buggy for a day out anywhere, whereas the car seat held him snugly. Physio said that so long as we lifted him out briefly every hour or two, which we would probably do anyway to feed/change/cuddle, then it was fine to use his carseat-on-the-buggy for a full day. (I have to say, his carseat laid back at such an angle as his airway wasn't trapped.)

But no doubt somebody will respond to me with research links proving otherwise.