Car seat stolen seat belt cut

Giggidy

Hi

I discovered yesterday morning my driver side and rear right car doors were unlocked and open, someone had been in my car overnight, rifled through my things and stole my 5 month old Joie every stage car seat. Not something I would have thought they would steal, but there you go. I discovered today when I went to put an old replacement car seat in, that they cut the rear right seat belt to pieces. So now I have to get that replaced and fitted as well 😠

I called my local BMW centre for a quote for a new seatbelt (BMW 320i M sport 2007) and its £135, cant afford that and fitting as well. Our mechanic is charging £40 to fit it I just have to order the parts. I had a look on google and seems like ebay is my best bet but Im not sure which belt is the right, so many coming up with different part numbers and hugely varying prices. Could anyone tell me how I go about ordering the right part please?

And on another note, Im worried that when I eventually replace my car seat with one like I had before (researched the right one for ages, rear facing up to 4years to comply with new laws), it wasnt cheap and Im worried they can just come back and steal it again. Are there any car seat alarms or trackers I can put on it as a secondary precaution to my car alarm. Which by the way didnt go off, I am almost certain I locked the car, there has been talk that locked cars have been broken into our area with a device that deactivates alarms, though dont know if that is possible

Herzlos

I'm not sure it'd be worth tracking the seat - what'd you do if you found it?

I suspect it's most likely the doors didn't lock correctly and been an opportunistic theft rather than a targetted one.

Have you asked any local scapyards if they've got a belt from an equivalent model?

Giggidy

Take it back of course 😊 I didnt want to go down the scrapyard route, I would be worried the seatbelt wouldnt be safe, if it had been an accident, etc even if it looked ok.

[Deleted User]

The only guaranteed way to stop a new seat being stolen is to take it out of the car and into the house when it's not being used.
As above contact a local Scrappy or go into a BMW forum to see if anyone is breaking that model.

Strider590

Giggidy wrote: »

there has been talk that locked cars have been broken into our area with a device that deactivates alarms, though dont know if that is possible

First of all, most people are stupid and repeat nonsense.

Secondly, there are things which can block your keyfob, either devices for this purpose OR devices and equipment which operates on the same frequency band. You should always listen for the sound of the locks engaging or preferably test the door handle.

societys_child

A second hand belt, unless obviously damaged, will be absolutely fine.

Joe_Horner

Do you use the other rear seats?

If not then remove the damaged belt and fit the child seat to the other side. All good and legal, and you can worry about whether to replace the dead belt at your leisure

elsien

I got mine off ebay and it was fine. Just look up the model of your car then choose the appropriate right or left side seatbelt. If you're not sure it's correct, message the seller to clarify. That way you're covered by ebay to refund if you're buying it off a business seller. Having said that, the one's off ebay will be from breakers yards.
Alternatively put your details into one of the online breakers yard searches and they will email/phone you if they have something that might suit. Always phone to check the details first though before asking them to post the item out.

This one any use?
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2011-318I-M-SPORT-5DR-SEAT-BELT-SEATBELT-REAR-RIGHT-BACK-OFF-SIDE-OSR-O-S-R-DRIV-/132082409707?fits=Car+Make%3ABMW%7CCars+Year%3A2007%7CCars+Type%3A320i&hash=item1ec0b9a0eb:g:qlcAAOSw6YtZXo01

Geoff1963

How about some CCTV, ideally the wireless sort that you can view on a mobile phone ; and an alarm that rings you up.

walwyn1978

They'll have stolen the child seat because bizarrely there is a market for used child seats now, due to the new regs, and Joie stages are seen as 'quality' car seats. It'll still only be sold for a fraction of its new value, but that's I suspect why it was taken.

Giggidy

Joe_Horner wrote: »

Do you use the other rear seats?

If not then remove the damaged belt and fit the child seat to the other side. All good and legal, and you can worry about whether to replace the dead belt at your leisure

I have two kids so need both seatbelts in the back