Which? safety alert on children's car seat

jimbo6977

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

flowerapplerabbit said:

Came on to ask this exact same question. The minimum legal requirement only crash tests seats at 30mph, pretty poor really. Which! test at 40mph so if a car seat has failed this then it isn't a safe product, regardless of the company's obligations. They really should show a lot of good will in this situation. Am very interested to hear how you get on jjjggg333, please do let us know. 

Why should they? They have sold a seat that meets the legal requirment. The time to ask questions is before you purchase, not after then expect money back.

We couldn't ask a question about a safety test that hadn't been carried out - new information has come to light.

Whether or not they should or shouldn't legally (we understand they don't have to), I'm not happy to put my young child in a seat that is dangerous at 40mph. And so it seems sensible to ask the question.

Of course you could have. You could have contacted Chicco and asked them about safety tests they conducted on the seat etc. How does the seat become dangerous at 40mph? Also all crashes are different.

Can't be that much of an issue if Which? make you pay to see this information.

TBH in the run up to the birth of my first child, trying to consider all the different crash scenarios and the need to contact manufacturers of car seats to ask how their seats perform at 10mph quicker than the legal requirements had not occurred to me.

So you could have gained the information, but didn't. Again, if this is such a concern, why do Which? not make this information available to all, not just those that pay a monthly fee?

Presuming you have now binned the car seat and purchased a replacement that has been tested to 40mph? However, what when Which? carry out a test saying it's no good at 50mph?

The info wouldn't have been available. And yes, I have purchased a replacement - a Swedish brand which adheres to the highest of any standard. This should ensure it also passes any Which? safety test in future.

Swedish Plus Test

Many of our Extended Rear-Facing (ERF) seats have the additional Swedish Plus Test Approval. This test is not mandatory. It is conducted at a higher speed and shorter braking distance than the European standards ECE R44 and R129 to represent a more realistic crash situation. 

What have you done with your old car seat now?

I've stored it at home in case Pramworld ask for me to return it, if my persistence pays off.

So it's an actual return for a refund you are looking for?

You could have purchased a car seat that had the 'Swedish Plus Test originally.

Yes, I'd like to return the seat for a refund or voucher.

I wish I'd bought a car seat that had the Swedish Plus Test. As I say, the new information from Which? is not something I was aware of until very recently. I assumed car seat safety was taken more seriously than the regulations suggest.

What if your new one gets tested in (enter realistic scenario that falls outside both the standard and Swedish test here) and fails?

jjjggg333

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

flowerapplerabbit said:

Came on to ask this exact same question. The minimum legal requirement only crash tests seats at 30mph, pretty poor really. Which! test at 40mph so if a car seat has failed this then it isn't a safe product, regardless of the company's obligations. They really should show a lot of good will in this situation. Am very interested to hear how you get on jjjggg333, please do let us know. 

Why should they? They have sold a seat that meets the legal requirment. The time to ask questions is before you purchase, not after then expect money back.

We couldn't ask a question about a safety test that hadn't been carried out - new information has come to light.

Whether or not they should or shouldn't legally (we understand they don't have to), I'm not happy to put my young child in a seat that is dangerous at 40mph. And so it seems sensible to ask the question.

Of course you could have. You could have contacted Chicco and asked them about safety tests they conducted on the seat etc. How does the seat become dangerous at 40mph? Also all crashes are different.

Can't be that much of an issue if Which? make you pay to see this information.

TBH in the run up to the birth of my first child, trying to consider all the different crash scenarios and the need to contact manufacturers of car seats to ask how their seats perform at 10mph quicker than the legal requirements had not occurred to me.

So you could have gained the information, but didn't. Again, if this is such a concern, why do Which? not make this information available to all, not just those that pay a monthly fee?

Presuming you have now binned the car seat and purchased a replacement that has been tested to 40mph? However, what when Which? carry out a test saying it's no good at 50mph?

The info wouldn't have been available. And yes, I have purchased a replacement - a Swedish brand which adheres to the highest of any standard. This should ensure it also passes any Which? safety test in future.

Swedish Plus Test

Many of our Extended Rear-Facing (ERF) seats have the additional Swedish Plus Test Approval. This test is not mandatory. It is conducted at a higher speed and shorter braking distance than the European standards ECE R44 and R129 to represent a more realistic crash situation. 

What have you done with your old car seat now?

I've stored it at home in case Pramworld ask for me to return it, if my persistence pays off.

So it's an actual return for a refund you are looking for?

You could have purchased a car seat that had the 'Swedish Plus Test originally.

Yes, I'd like to return the seat for a refund or voucher.

I wish I'd bought a car seat that had the Swedish Plus Test. As I say, the new information from Which? is not something I was aware of until very recently. I assumed car seat safety was taken more seriously than the regulations suggest.

So who have you actually approached, just  the manufacturer or the retailer? Not that it will make much difference.

Car seat safety is taken seriously, that's why we have legal requirments attached to them.

The retailer who have been in contact with the manufacturer, as they understand my concern.

Legal requirements doesn't necessarily translate into safe. Hence why a car seat can be safe at 30mph and dangerous at 40mph - quite a fine line there.

jjjggg333

jimbo6977 said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

flowerapplerabbit said:

Came on to ask this exact same question. The minimum legal requirement only crash tests seats at 30mph, pretty poor really. Which! test at 40mph so if a car seat has failed this then it isn't a safe product, regardless of the company's obligations. They really should show a lot of good will in this situation. Am very interested to hear how you get on jjjggg333, please do let us know. 

Why should they? They have sold a seat that meets the legal requirment. The time to ask questions is before you purchase, not after then expect money back.

We couldn't ask a question about a safety test that hadn't been carried out - new information has come to light.

Whether or not they should or shouldn't legally (we understand they don't have to), I'm not happy to put my young child in a seat that is dangerous at 40mph. And so it seems sensible to ask the question.

Of course you could have. You could have contacted Chicco and asked them about safety tests they conducted on the seat etc. How does the seat become dangerous at 40mph? Also all crashes are different.

Can't be that much of an issue if Which? make you pay to see this information.

TBH in the run up to the birth of my first child, trying to consider all the different crash scenarios and the need to contact manufacturers of car seats to ask how their seats perform at 10mph quicker than the legal requirements had not occurred to me.

So you could have gained the information, but didn't. Again, if this is such a concern, why do Which? not make this information available to all, not just those that pay a monthly fee?

Presuming you have now binned the car seat and purchased a replacement that has been tested to 40mph? However, what when Which? carry out a test saying it's no good at 50mph?

The info wouldn't have been available. And yes, I have purchased a replacement - a Swedish brand which adheres to the highest of any standard. This should ensure it also passes any Which? safety test in future.

Swedish Plus Test

Many of our Extended Rear-Facing (ERF) seats have the additional Swedish Plus Test Approval. This test is not mandatory. It is conducted at a higher speed and shorter braking distance than the European standards ECE R44 and R129 to represent a more realistic crash situation. 

What have you done with your old car seat now?

I've stored it at home in case Pramworld ask for me to return it, if my persistence pays off.

So it's an actual return for a refund you are looking for?

You could have purchased a car seat that had the 'Swedish Plus Test originally.

Yes, I'd like to return the seat for a refund or voucher.

I wish I'd bought a car seat that had the Swedish Plus Test. As I say, the new information from Which? is not something I was aware of until very recently. I assumed car seat safety was taken more seriously than the regulations suggest.

What if your new one gets tested in (enter realistic scenario that falls outside both the standard and Swedish test here) and fails?

It's possible, of course. But I've given myself the best chance of avoiding that by purchasing a Swedish brand that adheres to the highest standard around.

powerful_Rogue

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

flowerapplerabbit said:

Came on to ask this exact same question. The minimum legal requirement only crash tests seats at 30mph, pretty poor really. Which! test at 40mph so if a car seat has failed this then it isn't a safe product, regardless of the company's obligations. They really should show a lot of good will in this situation. Am very interested to hear how you get on jjjggg333, please do let us know. 

Why should they? They have sold a seat that meets the legal requirment. The time to ask questions is before you purchase, not after then expect money back.

We couldn't ask a question about a safety test that hadn't been carried out - new information has come to light.

Whether or not they should or shouldn't legally (we understand they don't have to), I'm not happy to put my young child in a seat that is dangerous at 40mph. And so it seems sensible to ask the question.

Of course you could have. You could have contacted Chicco and asked them about safety tests they conducted on the seat etc. How does the seat become dangerous at 40mph? Also all crashes are different.

Can't be that much of an issue if Which? make you pay to see this information.

TBH in the run up to the birth of my first child, trying to consider all the different crash scenarios and the need to contact manufacturers of car seats to ask how their seats perform at 10mph quicker than the legal requirements had not occurred to me.

So you could have gained the information, but didn't. Again, if this is such a concern, why do Which? not make this information available to all, not just those that pay a monthly fee?

Presuming you have now binned the car seat and purchased a replacement that has been tested to 40mph? However, what when Which? carry out a test saying it's no good at 50mph?

The info wouldn't have been available. And yes, I have purchased a replacement - a Swedish brand which adheres to the highest of any standard. This should ensure it also passes any Which? safety test in future.

Swedish Plus Test

Many of our Extended Rear-Facing (ERF) seats have the additional Swedish Plus Test Approval. This test is not mandatory. It is conducted at a higher speed and shorter braking distance than the European standards ECE R44 and R129 to represent a more realistic crash situation. 

What have you done with your old car seat now?

I've stored it at home in case Pramworld ask for me to return it, if my persistence pays off.

So it's an actual return for a refund you are looking for?

You could have purchased a car seat that had the 'Swedish Plus Test originally.

Yes, I'd like to return the seat for a refund or voucher.

I wish I'd bought a car seat that had the Swedish Plus Test. As I say, the new information from Which? is not something I was aware of until very recently. I assumed car seat safety was taken more seriously than the regulations suggest.

So who have you actually approached, just  the manufacturer or the retailer? Not that it will make much difference.

Car seat safety is taken seriously, that's why we have legal requirments attached to them.

The retailer who have been in contact with the manufacturer, as they understand my concern.

Legal requirements doesn't necessarily translate into safe. Hence why a car seat can be safe at 30mph and dangerous at 40mph - quite a fine line there.

How has that seat all of a sudden became dangerous?

So a Swedish Test Plus car seat in a 1983 Austin Metro is safer then a Chicco Seat4Fix in a 2021 BMW X3?

powerful_Rogue

flowerapplerabbit said:

@powerful_Rogue with all due respect, I don't think you have all the information on this one. Yes you have to pay for Which! to see the full report, but the safety alert is free for anyone to read. They also detail exactly why they test at 40mph not 70mph, again free to read (I'm not able to post the link): 
"We are sometimes asked why we don't crash-test car seats at 70mph.  A crash at this speed would most likely overload the vehicle structure, so the effectiveness of any safety features such as seat belts, airbags and child car seats would be severely compromised. With our crash tests we aim to find a severe enough impact that covers a large proportion of the fatal and seriously injured accidents we see, so we can make the most significant difference possible."


I'm talking about the safety of my two year old here, and having to shell out hundreds of pounds which I don't easily have. Not sure why you're taking such a combative tone.

Because you have purchased a car seat that meets the UK legal requirements. The time to look into this is before purchasing. The company has no legal requirement to issue a recall or refund.

jjjggg333

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

flowerapplerabbit said:

Came on to ask this exact same question. The minimum legal requirement only crash tests seats at 30mph, pretty poor really. Which! test at 40mph so if a car seat has failed this then it isn't a safe product, regardless of the company's obligations. They really should show a lot of good will in this situation. Am very interested to hear how you get on jjjggg333, please do let us know. 

Why should they? They have sold a seat that meets the legal requirment. The time to ask questions is before you purchase, not after then expect money back.

We couldn't ask a question about a safety test that hadn't been carried out - new information has come to light.

Whether or not they should or shouldn't legally (we understand they don't have to), I'm not happy to put my young child in a seat that is dangerous at 40mph. And so it seems sensible to ask the question.

Of course you could have. You could have contacted Chicco and asked them about safety tests they conducted on the seat etc. How does the seat become dangerous at 40mph? Also all crashes are different.

Can't be that much of an issue if Which? make you pay to see this information.

TBH in the run up to the birth of my first child, trying to consider all the different crash scenarios and the need to contact manufacturers of car seats to ask how their seats perform at 10mph quicker than the legal requirements had not occurred to me.

So you could have gained the information, but didn't. Again, if this is such a concern, why do Which? not make this information available to all, not just those that pay a monthly fee?

Presuming you have now binned the car seat and purchased a replacement that has been tested to 40mph? However, what when Which? carry out a test saying it's no good at 50mph?

The info wouldn't have been available. And yes, I have purchased a replacement - a Swedish brand which adheres to the highest of any standard. This should ensure it also passes any Which? safety test in future.

Swedish Plus Test

Many of our Extended Rear-Facing (ERF) seats have the additional Swedish Plus Test Approval. This test is not mandatory. It is conducted at a higher speed and shorter braking distance than the European standards ECE R44 and R129 to represent a more realistic crash situation. 

What have you done with your old car seat now?

I've stored it at home in case Pramworld ask for me to return it, if my persistence pays off.

So it's an actual return for a refund you are looking for?

You could have purchased a car seat that had the 'Swedish Plus Test originally.

Yes, I'd like to return the seat for a refund or voucher.

I wish I'd bought a car seat that had the Swedish Plus Test. As I say, the new information from Which? is not something I was aware of until very recently. I assumed car seat safety was taken more seriously than the regulations suggest.

So who have you actually approached, just  the manufacturer or the retailer? Not that it will make much difference.

Car seat safety is taken seriously, that's why we have legal requirments attached to them.

The retailer who have been in contact with the manufacturer, as they understand my concern.

Legal requirements doesn't necessarily translate into safe. Hence why a car seat can be safe at 30mph and dangerous at 40mph - quite a fine line there.

How has that seat all of a sudden became dangerous?

So a Swedish Test Plus car seat in a 1983 Austin Metro is safer then a Chicco Seat4Fix in a 2021 BMW X3?

"Our lab experts spotted issues during the front impact crash test which caused the dummy to twist too much to the side."

Just to be clear - can you understand why I wouldn't feel comfortable putting my baby in a seat that's been issued a safety alert? It's just my request for a refund that you're taking issue with, correct?

powerful_Rogue

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

flowerapplerabbit said:

Came on to ask this exact same question. The minimum legal requirement only crash tests seats at 30mph, pretty poor really. Which! test at 40mph so if a car seat has failed this then it isn't a safe product, regardless of the company's obligations. They really should show a lot of good will in this situation. Am very interested to hear how you get on jjjggg333, please do let us know. 

Why should they? They have sold a seat that meets the legal requirment. The time to ask questions is before you purchase, not after then expect money back.

We couldn't ask a question about a safety test that hadn't been carried out - new information has come to light.

Whether or not they should or shouldn't legally (we understand they don't have to), I'm not happy to put my young child in a seat that is dangerous at 40mph. And so it seems sensible to ask the question.

Of course you could have. You could have contacted Chicco and asked them about safety tests they conducted on the seat etc. How does the seat become dangerous at 40mph? Also all crashes are different.

Can't be that much of an issue if Which? make you pay to see this information.

TBH in the run up to the birth of my first child, trying to consider all the different crash scenarios and the need to contact manufacturers of car seats to ask how their seats perform at 10mph quicker than the legal requirements had not occurred to me.

So you could have gained the information, but didn't. Again, if this is such a concern, why do Which? not make this information available to all, not just those that pay a monthly fee?

Presuming you have now binned the car seat and purchased a replacement that has been tested to 40mph? However, what when Which? carry out a test saying it's no good at 50mph?

The info wouldn't have been available. And yes, I have purchased a replacement - a Swedish brand which adheres to the highest of any standard. This should ensure it also passes any Which? safety test in future.

Swedish Plus Test

Many of our Extended Rear-Facing (ERF) seats have the additional Swedish Plus Test Approval. This test is not mandatory. It is conducted at a higher speed and shorter braking distance than the European standards ECE R44 and R129 to represent a more realistic crash situation. 

What have you done with your old car seat now?

I've stored it at home in case Pramworld ask for me to return it, if my persistence pays off.

So it's an actual return for a refund you are looking for?

You could have purchased a car seat that had the 'Swedish Plus Test originally.

Yes, I'd like to return the seat for a refund or voucher.

I wish I'd bought a car seat that had the Swedish Plus Test. As I say, the new information from Which? is not something I was aware of until very recently. I assumed car seat safety was taken more seriously than the regulations suggest.

So who have you actually approached, just  the manufacturer or the retailer? Not that it will make much difference.

Car seat safety is taken seriously, that's why we have legal requirments attached to them.

The retailer who have been in contact with the manufacturer, as they understand my concern.

Legal requirements doesn't necessarily translate into safe. Hence why a car seat can be safe at 30mph and dangerous at 40mph - quite a fine line there.

How has that seat all of a sudden became dangerous?

So a Swedish Test Plus car seat in a 1983 Austin Metro is safer then a Chicco Seat4Fix in a 2021 BMW X3?

"Our lab experts spotted issues during the front impact crash test which caused the dummy to twist too much to the side."

Just to be clear - can you understand why I wouldn't feel comfortable putting my baby in a seat that's been issued a safety alert? It's just my request for a refund that you're taking issue with, correct?

Of course, but the fact remains, it still meets all the legal requirments for a car seat. Maybe your time would be better used lobbying your MP in regards to the safety standards.

flowerapplerabbit

I know there is no legal requirement on the company, don't think anyone has ever said that. It's impossible to know if a car seat will pass a safety test that it hasn't yet taken. 

This is what happened at 40mph (but presumably not at 30mph): "It performed particularly poorly in the front-impact test because there was some rotation of the car seat shell during the collision, which caused the crash-test dummy to twist to the side. Plus, the buckle on the car seat broke as it was torn out during the force."

Of course there may be another safety test that comes along, and I know it can be easy to be over neurotic as a new parent. But it seems pretty clear that this seat isn't safe, and I hope (though don't expect) the company will take some responsibility for that. Turns out minimum safety regulations aren't great in this country, not something I knew beforehand, I admit. Perhaps they will progress as our laws on needing car seats in general have.

flowerapplerabbit said:

@powerful_Rogue with all due respect, I don't think you have all the information on this one. Yes you have to pay for Which! to see the full report, but the safety alert is free for anyone to read. They also detail exactly why they test at 40mph not 70mph, again free to read (I'm not able to post the link): 
"We are sometimes asked why we don't crash-test car seats at 70mph.  A crash at this speed would most likely overload the vehicle structure, so the effectiveness of any safety features such as seat belts, airbags and child car seats would be severely compromised. With our crash tests we aim to find a severe enough impact that covers a large proportion of the fatal and seriously injured accidents we see, so we can make the most significant difference possible."


I'm talking about the safety of my two year old here, and having to shell out hundreds of pounds which I don't easily have. Not sure why you're taking such a combative tone.

Because you have purchased a car seat that meets the UK legal requirements. The time to look into this is before purchasing. The company has no legal requirement to issue a recall or refund.

k3lvc

Just to be clear - can you understand why I wouldn't feel comfortable putting my baby in a seat that's been issued a safety alert? It's just my request for a refund that you're taking issue with, correct?

I fully understand the 'uncomfortable' element - it's the 'change of mind' element that creates the issue. A purchase was made based on information available and the product is compliant - nothing has changed other than additional information coming to light which may have changed your original purchase decision but wasn't available at the time. No different from many other elements of safety testing as processes evolve

As as suggested above the car seat is a single part of a complex equation in an accident - one of few elements you have any control of - and even in the simplest of accidents strange things happen that could challenge the results of even the safest seat

jjjggg333

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

jjjggg333 said:

powerful_Rogue said:

flowerapplerabbit said:

Came on to ask this exact same question. The minimum legal requirement only crash tests seats at 30mph, pretty poor really. Which! test at 40mph so if a car seat has failed this then it isn't a safe product, regardless of the company's obligations. They really should show a lot of good will in this situation. Am very interested to hear how you get on jjjggg333, please do let us know. 

Why should they? They have sold a seat that meets the legal requirment. The time to ask questions is before you purchase, not after then expect money back.

We couldn't ask a question about a safety test that hadn't been carried out - new information has come to light.

Whether or not they should or shouldn't legally (we understand they don't have to), I'm not happy to put my young child in a seat that is dangerous at 40mph. And so it seems sensible to ask the question.

Of course you could have. You could have contacted Chicco and asked them about safety tests they conducted on the seat etc. How does the seat become dangerous at 40mph? Also all crashes are different.

Can't be that much of an issue if Which? make you pay to see this information.

TBH in the run up to the birth of my first child, trying to consider all the different crash scenarios and the need to contact manufacturers of car seats to ask how their seats perform at 10mph quicker than the legal requirements had not occurred to me.

So you could have gained the information, but didn't. Again, if this is such a concern, why do Which? not make this information available to all, not just those that pay a monthly fee?

Presuming you have now binned the car seat and purchased a replacement that has been tested to 40mph? However, what when Which? carry out a test saying it's no good at 50mph?

The info wouldn't have been available. And yes, I have purchased a replacement - a Swedish brand which adheres to the highest of any standard. This should ensure it also passes any Which? safety test in future.

Swedish Plus Test

Many of our Extended Rear-Facing (ERF) seats have the additional Swedish Plus Test Approval. This test is not mandatory. It is conducted at a higher speed and shorter braking distance than the European standards ECE R44 and R129 to represent a more realistic crash situation. 

What have you done with your old car seat now?

I've stored it at home in case Pramworld ask for me to return it, if my persistence pays off.

So it's an actual return for a refund you are looking for?

You could have purchased a car seat that had the 'Swedish Plus Test originally.

Yes, I'd like to return the seat for a refund or voucher.

I wish I'd bought a car seat that had the Swedish Plus Test. As I say, the new information from Which? is not something I was aware of until very recently. I assumed car seat safety was taken more seriously than the regulations suggest.

So who have you actually approached, just  the manufacturer or the retailer? Not that it will make much difference.

Car seat safety is taken seriously, that's why we have legal requirments attached to them.

The retailer who have been in contact with the manufacturer, as they understand my concern.

Legal requirements doesn't necessarily translate into safe. Hence why a car seat can be safe at 30mph and dangerous at 40mph - quite a fine line there.

How has that seat all of a sudden became dangerous?

So a Swedish Test Plus car seat in a 1983 Austin Metro is safer then a Chicco Seat4Fix in a 2021 BMW X3?

"Our lab experts spotted issues during the front impact crash test which caused the dummy to twist too much to the side."

Just to be clear - can you understand why I wouldn't feel comfortable putting my baby in a seat that's been issued a safety alert? It's just my request for a refund that you're taking issue with, correct?

Of course, but the fact remains, it still meets all the legal requirments for a car seat. Maybe your time would be better used lobbying your MP in regards to the safety standards.

I thought we'd established I understand that it meets legal requirements? Your suggestion of lobbying for higher standards is a sensible one - getting a safer car seat in the meantime and a refund for my un-safe one is my personal priority