First-time Mum & Dad - any tips for money-saving?

fred246 · 17 May 2019 at 8:15PM

Kynthia wrote: »

Having common sense clearly doesn't mean people know the forces incurred by the harness restraining a 5kg child and a 20kg child in a 70 miles per hour crash are very different and what they are. Very qualified people test these seats and the law insists you use them and use the right class for the weight/height of the child so this is for good reason. Child car seats are different from the seats in your car so comparing their useful life is ridiculous. They are made of different materials, as child seats would be unaffordable if they were made the same as actual car seats, plus child seats need to be lighter so they can be moved from car to car. They are also fixed to the car very differently, permanently versus temporarily.

I don't know why you're insisting these safety measures are unnecessary. What is your expertise.

In the UK the number of car crashes is low. Most car crashes are low impact. They won't affect car seats. Major car crashes are rare. When they happen there is lots of damage. Blood, glass etc. What is the chance that a car seat will be involved in a major accident and show no signs of damage? Everyone seems to know that you don't use car seats after a major crash so they would throw them out. So what is the chance that a car seat has been involved in a major accident without any damage being obvious and then someone is trying to sell it secondhand? What proportion of car seats in the UK have been involved in a major crash and show no damage? Virtually zero. OK so you buy one. The harness is made of super strong webbing. That's not going to break. Do you make the safety critical parts out of flimsy plastic and polystyrene that might break easily. Of course not. The car seat is held in with ISOFIX or super strong webbing. So you check the harness and check the seat is secure. All our seats you could clearly check that the child was totally restrained with webbing and metal. What is the chance you will then have a major accident and the child isn't secure and the child will come to harm where it wouldn't have if it was a brand new seat? If the sale of car seats that had been involved in major accidents without showing any signs of damage was a leading cause of child mortality the WHO would state it. They don't. It really isn't a major risk to our children. I would say people not reading instructions and not testing them when fitted is a bigger risk. Also the way parents drive in cars, speeding and failing to obey the rules of the road is a much greater risk.

Kynthia · 20 May 2019 at 12:30PM

fred246 wrote: »

In the UK the number of car crashes is low. Most car crashes are low impact. They won't affect car seats. Major car crashes are rare. When they happen there is lots of damage. Blood, glass etc. What is the chance that a car seat will be involved in a major accident and show no signs of damage? Everyone seems to know that you don't use car seats after a major crash so they would throw them out. So what is the chance that a car seat has been involved in a major accident without any damage being obvious and then someone is trying to sell it secondhand? What proportion of car seats in the UK have been involved in a major crash and show no damage? Virtually zero. OK so you buy one. The harness is made of super strong webbing. That's not going to break. Do you make the safety critical parts out of flimsy plastic and polystyrene that might break easily. Of course not. The car seat is held in with ISOFIX or super strong webbing. So you check the harness and check the seat is secure. All our seats you could clearly check that the child was totally restrained with webbing and metal. What is the chance you will then have a major accident and the child isn't secure and the child will come to harm where it wouldn't have if it was a brand new seat? If the sale of car seats that had been involved in major accidents without showing any signs of damage was a leading cause of child mortality the WHO would state it. They don't. It really isn't a major risk to our children. I would say people not reading instructions and not testing them when fitted is a bigger risk. Also the way parents drive in cars, speeding and failing to obey the rules of the road is a much greater risk.

How would accident investigators know whether a child car seat was damaged prior to being damaged in a major accident? No one collects data on second-hand child car seats in accidents not because it's not an issue but because it couldn't be done accurately and perhaps because it isn't enough of an issue because most people follow the advice and by new.

You've been given lots of reasons why it's not advised to buy child car seats second-hand that arent just the fact it may have been in a major accident. If you can't see that then fine, but those who's job it is can and that's the advice.

fred246 · 21 May 2019 at 7:09AM

I have heard that some people who have got child seats that have been involved in major accidents without showing any signs of damage have been going to shops and buying new seats of identical design. They have then swapped them over and then gone back to the shop for a refund saying they were unsuitable. So it's possible you could buy a new seat that had actually been involved in a major accident (without showing any external signs of damage). I guess it's important when buying a new car seat to check the packaging has never been opened and it's securely sealed.

Former_MSE_Laura · 22 May 2019 at 12:11PM

Congratulations to you both! There are some really great ideas on here, we particularly like the suggestions of getting second-hand clothes. We've actually got a guide with 53 baby and toddler MoneySaving tips. Hopefully some of these will help: https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/family/baby-checklist/

Megson · 23 May 2019 at 11:42PM

We’re due in September too, here’s what we’ve done so far:

-Visited stores to work out which pram set we liked the best, checked nationwide, found it for 85% off a four hour drive away on eBay, when it’s time for us to resell, we’ll make a profit (petrol to collect included)
-completed baby box university to get a free box instead of a bedside basket, compared to snuzpod, it saved £200
-visited a local mothercare that was closing down, not only bought reduced items, but received discount code for 15% off website on next visit
- bought a breast pump from boots, combining the parent club with an advantage card offer, meant we collected enough points on the one purchase to get all the bottles, bottle warmer and steriliser we needed
-transferred clubcard points into a mother and baby magazine subscription for 12 months, used a new subscriber code to get a free baby food making pouch set
-currently collecting nectar points with any offers available, ie this weekends bonus points offer in store and on eBay, last November they had a double up promotion that meant we bought most Christmas gifts there for free (DVD’s, electrical items etc) its also valid on clothes, this year if it runs again we’re hoping to use it for any baby needs too
-sitting down to look at how we operate we realised we wouldn’t need a wardrobe (just a chest of drawers, who has time for hangers when you’re exhausted?) or a nursing chair (sofa in the day, spare bed at night) so for the nursery the only essentials were drawers and a cot, and a convertible covers four years
-also, don’t bother with a video monitor, just get regular wireless security cameras, it’s £35 instead of £200, and you watch on your phone instead of a monitor, so you can check in when at work or away too

Those are the major tips I can think of for now, hope it helps!

First-time Mum & Dad - any tips for money-saving?

Comments

Categories

Get our FREE Weekly email full of deals & guides - and it’s spam-free