Re: Car seats (was back from Denmark)

[Guest guest]

> and kids are WELL strapped in in a car

If only!!

We are just back from a fortnight in France (I went nomail here by the way -

have I missed anything important?) and of the 2,500+ miles we have driven, my

DS4 has been properly strapped into his car seat for about 17 miles in total.

He sits in a Britax Freeway and he discovered before we even got to Hull where

we caught the ferry that he could get the straps off his shoulders. We kept

stopping and putting him back in properly, but that of course made it a game

and within 5 minutes of driving he would be out again and grinning at us.

Eventually we left him and waited till he was asleep before strapping him in

securely. I know we shouldn't have, I know how unsafe it is, I know that if we

had had an accident he would have been flung through the windscreen (his seat

is in the middle secured by the lap belt - the only seat we have that fixes in

this position) but we had a ferry to catch, and we were making such slow

progress as each time we strapped him back in he would have a tantrum and it

would take 2 adults 10 minutes to get the job done. Anyway, suffice to say

that the whole holiday went on the same way, with him only strapped in for any

length of time while he was asleep.

First job since we came home has been to try and find some way of sorting this

problem. And I think I have the answer - the US Britax site has an accessory

called a chest clip which keeps the two shoulder straps together and would sort

us out perfectly. I have contacted Britax to find out if it is available over

here and was told that it's not, it doesn't meet UK safety standards because it

delays getting the child out of the seat in an accident and could cause damage

to the child's chest. Fine, I take the point, but at the moment my child is

going to be through the windscreen with damage to lots of bits I imagine. And

he won't need removing from his seat because he will already be out and on the

road. And why is it OK for American children to be put at risk like this, but

not British kids?

Anyway, having been told that Britax UK will not supply me with a clip, and

having been " strongly advised " not to try to get hold of one myself, I am in a

bit of a quandry. I think I am going to try to get hold of one, but I just

wandered what you lot would do, and whether anybody has any other suggestions.

Lynda

SAHM to (8), (6), Fraser (3), Callum (15/5/00)

Newsletter editor, Mid-Northumberland Branch

Area Rep, Region 7

www.familygarland.co.uk

[Guest guest]

Get one of the large Lakeland clips (the sort you use to close opened packets,

etc.). It should be too difficult for Callum to open but is easily unclipped in

case of emergency.

I have to confess that I haven't actually tried it, although I needed something

like this when DS3 was in a 5point harness - just didn't think of it in time.

Now he's in a normal strap which he undoes at will and I don't have any ideas to

deal with that one ;o(

Alison

If only!!

We are just back from a fortnight in France (I went nomail here by the way -

have I missed anything important?) and of the 2,500+ miles we have driven, my

[Guest guest]

Get one of the large Lakeland clips (the sort you use to close opened packets,

etc.). It should be too difficult for Callum to open but is easily unclipped in

case of emergency.

I have to confess that I haven't actually tried it, although I needed something

like this when DS3 was in a 5point harness - just didn't think of it in time.

Now he's in a normal strap which he undoes at will and I don't have any ideas to

deal with that one ;o(

Alison

If only!!

We are just back from a fortnight in France (I went nomail here by the way -

have I missed anything important?) and of the 2,500+ miles we have driven, my

[Guest guest]

> > and kids are WELL strapped in in a car

>

>If only!!

>We are just back from a fortnight in France (I went nomail here by the way -

>have I missed anything important?) and of the 2,500+ miles we have driven, my

>DS4 has been properly strapped into his car seat for about 17 miles in total.

>He sits in a Britax Freeway and he discovered before we even got to Hull where

>we caught the ferry that he could get the straps off his shoulders.

Lynda we are having exactly the same problem with DS2 - same Britax

Freeway Excel. It is really easy for him to slip his arms through the

straps. DS1 responded to a bawling out and didn't do it again whilst

he was using it, but DS2 is a different child!

--

jennifer@...

Vaudin

[Guest guest]

> > and kids are WELL strapped in in a car

>

>If only!!

>We are just back from a fortnight in France (I went nomail here by the way -

>have I missed anything important?) and of the 2,500+ miles we have driven, my

>DS4 has been properly strapped into his car seat for about 17 miles in total.

>He sits in a Britax Freeway and he discovered before we even got to Hull where

>we caught the ferry that he could get the straps off his shoulders.

Lynda we are having exactly the same problem with DS2 - same Britax

Freeway Excel. It is really easy for him to slip his arms through the

straps. DS1 responded to a bawling out and didn't do it again whilst

he was using it, but DS2 is a different child!

--

jennifer@...

Vaudin

[Guest guest]

I'd try to get hold of one. We had the same problem, and ended up adapting

the chest strap from a rucksack to hold him in - not ideal, but as you say

better than an untethered child. I reckoned that the chances of having a

serious accident must rise exponentially if you have at least half your

concentration on the strap arrangements of the child behind you. Ok, you

can't legislate for other drivers, but if you're able to concentrate you'll

be driving a lot more safely. Also, what are the risks of having an

accident so serious that you're unable to get the child out yourself?

Fairly small, I'd reckon. But the danger of a small accident being made

much more serious by untethered child being launched through a windscreen?

Vicki Portman

http://www.plushpants.co.uk

Re: Car seats (was back from Denmark)

> > and kids are WELL strapped in in a car

>

> If only!!

> We are just back from a fortnight in France (I went nomail here by the

way -

> have I missed anything important?) and of the 2,500+ miles we have driven,

my

> DS4 has been properly strapped into his car seat for about 17 miles in

total.

> He sits in a Britax Freeway and he discovered before we even got to Hull

where

> we caught the ferry that he could get the straps off his shoulders. We

kept

> stopping and putting him back in properly, but that of course made it a

game

> and within 5 minutes of driving he would be out again and grinning at us.

> Eventually we left him and waited till he was asleep before strapping him

in

> securely. I know we shouldn't have, I know how unsafe it is, I know that

if we

> had had an accident he would have been flung through the windscreen (his

seat

> is in the middle secured by the lap belt - the only seat we have that

fixes in

> this position) but we had a ferry to catch, and we were making such slow

> progress as each time we strapped him back in he would have a tantrum and

it

> would take 2 adults 10 minutes to get the job done. Anyway, suffice to

say

> that the whole holiday went on the same way, with him only strapped in for

any

> length of time while he was asleep.

> First job since we came home has been to try and find some way of sorting

this

> problem. And I think I have the answer - the US Britax site has an

accessory

> called a chest clip which keeps the two shoulder straps together and would

sort

> us out perfectly. I have contacted Britax to find out if it is available

over

> here and was told that it's not, it doesn't meet UK safety standards

because it

> delays getting the child out of the seat in an accident and could cause

damage

> to the child's chest. Fine, I take the point, but at the moment my child

is

> going to be through the windscreen with damage to lots of bits I imagine.

And

> he won't need removing from his seat because he will already be out and on

the

> road. And why is it OK for American children to be put at risk like this,

but

> not British kids?

> Anyway, having been told that Britax UK will not supply me with a clip,

and

> having been " strongly advised " not to try to get hold of one myself, I am

in a

> bit of a quandry. I think I am going to try to get hold of one, but I

just

> wandered what you lot would do, and whether anybody has any other

suggestions.

>

> Lynda

> SAHM to (8), (6), Fraser (3), Callum (15/5/00)

> Newsletter editor, Mid-Northumberland Branch

> Area Rep, Region 7

> www.familygarland.co.uk

>

>

>

>

>

> *** NCT enquiry line - 0 ***

>

> Live chat http://www.yahoogroups.com/chat/nct-coffee

>

> Have you found out about all the other groups for the NCT online?

>

>

[Guest guest]

I'd try to get hold of one. We had the same problem, and ended up adapting

the chest strap from a rucksack to hold him in - not ideal, but as you say

better than an untethered child. I reckoned that the chances of having a

serious accident must rise exponentially if you have at least half your

concentration on the strap arrangements of the child behind you. Ok, you

can't legislate for other drivers, but if you're able to concentrate you'll

be driving a lot more safely. Also, what are the risks of having an

accident so serious that you're unable to get the child out yourself?

Fairly small, I'd reckon. But the danger of a small accident being made

much more serious by untethered child being launched through a windscreen?

Vicki Portman

http://www.plushpants.co.uk

Re: Car seats (was back from Denmark)

> > and kids are WELL strapped in in a car

>

> If only!!

> We are just back from a fortnight in France (I went nomail here by the

way -

> have I missed anything important?) and of the 2,500+ miles we have driven,

my

> DS4 has been properly strapped into his car seat for about 17 miles in

total.

> He sits in a Britax Freeway and he discovered before we even got to Hull

where

> we caught the ferry that he could get the straps off his shoulders. We

kept

> stopping and putting him back in properly, but that of course made it a

game

> and within 5 minutes of driving he would be out again and grinning at us.

> Eventually we left him and waited till he was asleep before strapping him

in

> securely. I know we shouldn't have, I know how unsafe it is, I know that

if we

> had had an accident he would have been flung through the windscreen (his

seat

> is in the middle secured by the lap belt - the only seat we have that

fixes in

> this position) but we had a ferry to catch, and we were making such slow

> progress as each time we strapped him back in he would have a tantrum and

it

> would take 2 adults 10 minutes to get the job done. Anyway, suffice to

say

> that the whole holiday went on the same way, with him only strapped in for

any

> length of time while he was asleep.

> First job since we came home has been to try and find some way of sorting

this

> problem. And I think I have the answer - the US Britax site has an

accessory

> called a chest clip which keeps the two shoulder straps together and would

sort

> us out perfectly. I have contacted Britax to find out if it is available

over

> here and was told that it's not, it doesn't meet UK safety standards

because it

> delays getting the child out of the seat in an accident and could cause

damage

> to the child's chest. Fine, I take the point, but at the moment my child

is

> going to be through the windscreen with damage to lots of bits I imagine.

And

> he won't need removing from his seat because he will already be out and on

the

> road. And why is it OK for American children to be put at risk like this,

but

> not British kids?

> Anyway, having been told that Britax UK will not supply me with a clip,

and

> having been " strongly advised " not to try to get hold of one myself, I am

in a

> bit of a quandry. I think I am going to try to get hold of one, but I

just

> wandered what you lot would do, and whether anybody has any other

suggestions.

>

> Lynda

> SAHM to (8), (6), Fraser (3), Callum (15/5/00)

> Newsletter editor, Mid-Northumberland Branch

> Area Rep, Region 7

> www.familygarland.co.uk

>

>

>

>

>

> *** NCT enquiry line - 0 ***

>

> Live chat http://www.yahoogroups.com/chat/nct-coffee

>

> Have you found out about all the other groups for the NCT online?

>

>

[Guest guest]

I'd try to get hold of one. We had the same problem, and ended up adapting

the chest strap from a rucksack to hold him in - not ideal, but as you say

better than an untethered child. I reckoned that the chances of having a

serious accident must rise exponentially if you have at least half your

concentration on the strap arrangements of the child behind you. Ok, you

can't legislate for other drivers, but if you're able to concentrate you'll

be driving a lot more safely. Also, what are the risks of having an

accident so serious that you're unable to get the child out yourself?

Fairly small, I'd reckon. But the danger of a small accident being made

much more serious by untethered child being launched through a windscreen?

Vicki Portman

http://www.plushpants.co.uk

Re: Car seats (was back from Denmark)

> > and kids are WELL strapped in in a car

>

> If only!!

> We are just back from a fortnight in France (I went nomail here by the

way -

> have I missed anything important?) and of the 2,500+ miles we have driven,

my

> DS4 has been properly strapped into his car seat for about 17 miles in

total.

> He sits in a Britax Freeway and he discovered before we even got to Hull

where

> we caught the ferry that he could get the straps off his shoulders. We

kept

> stopping and putting him back in properly, but that of course made it a

game

> and within 5 minutes of driving he would be out again and grinning at us.

> Eventually we left him and waited till he was asleep before strapping him

in

> securely. I know we shouldn't have, I know how unsafe it is, I know that

if we

> had had an accident he would have been flung through the windscreen (his

seat

> is in the middle secured by the lap belt - the only seat we have that

fixes in

> this position) but we had a ferry to catch, and we were making such slow

> progress as each time we strapped him back in he would have a tantrum and

it

> would take 2 adults 10 minutes to get the job done. Anyway, suffice to

say

> that the whole holiday went on the same way, with him only strapped in for

any

> length of time while he was asleep.

> First job since we came home has been to try and find some way of sorting

this

> problem. And I think I have the answer - the US Britax site has an

accessory

> called a chest clip which keeps the two shoulder straps together and would

sort

> us out perfectly. I have contacted Britax to find out if it is available

over

> here and was told that it's not, it doesn't meet UK safety standards

because it

> delays getting the child out of the seat in an accident and could cause

damage

> to the child's chest. Fine, I take the point, but at the moment my child

is

> going to be through the windscreen with damage to lots of bits I imagine.

And

> he won't need removing from his seat because he will already be out and on

the

> road. And why is it OK for American children to be put at risk like this,

but

> not British kids?

> Anyway, having been told that Britax UK will not supply me with a clip,

and

> having been " strongly advised " not to try to get hold of one myself, I am

in a

> bit of a quandry. I think I am going to try to get hold of one, but I

just

> wandered what you lot would do, and whether anybody has any other

suggestions.

>

> Lynda

> SAHM to (8), (6), Fraser (3), Callum (15/5/00)

> Newsletter editor, Mid-Northumberland Branch

> Area Rep, Region 7

> www.familygarland.co.uk

>

>

>

>

>

> *** NCT enquiry line - 0 ***

>

> Live chat http://www.yahoogroups.com/chat/nct-coffee

>

> Have you found out about all the other groups for the NCT online?

>

>

[Guest guest]

If you want an American clip, Lynda, I can probably buy one for you from a

friend who works in a baby shop in the USA. I even have dollars available!

Lesley

---------------------

From: " Lynda

> First job since we came home has been to try and find some way of sorting

this

> problem. And I think I have the answer - the US Britax site has an

accessory

> called a chest clip which keeps the two shoulder straps together and would

sort

> us out perfectly. I have contacted Britax to find out if it is available

over

> here and was told that it's not, it doesn't meet UK safety standards

because it

> delays getting the child out of the seat in an accident and could cause

damage

> to the child's chest. Fine, I take the point, but at the moment my child

is

> going to be through the windscreen with damage to lots of bits I imagine.

And

> he won't need removing from his seat because he will already be out and on

the

> road. And why is it OK for American children to be put at risk like this,

but

> not British kids?

> Anyway, having been told that Britax UK will not supply me with a clip,

and

> having been " strongly advised " not to try to get hold of one myself, I am

in a

> bit of a quandry. I think I am going to try to get hold of one, but I

just

> wandered what you lot would do, and whether anybody has any other

suggestions.

[Guest guest]

Had this problem with DD1 (not a freeway but an earlier similar model) -

we re-threaded the seat belt through a lower set of loops. Made it very

tight on her when she got a little taller but we then moved back to the

other setting and read her the riot act which (amazingly) worked with a

little more time passed.

If it hadn't we were going to shorten the straps holding the lower

portion of the seat belt (does the freeway have the adjuster or did they

design it out?). We also found the local road safety guy at our county

council a mine of info (usually contacted through the highway dept. or

the County Health and Safety officer will know who they are) on all the

different sorts of seat/car combinations. Some CC's (although not ours)

also have a 'loan' dept where you can check the fit of a seat before you

buy it...

HTH

--

Helen Armfield

helen@...

[Guest guest]

Lynda wrote> > He sits in a Britax Freeway and he discovered before

we even got to Hull

> where

> > we caught the ferry that he could get the straps off his

shoulders. >>>>>>>>

Isaac does this as well. I have found that if he starts doing it too

often then I have a toy from Boots that is supposed to fasten on to

one strap with velcro and I fasten it to both shoulder straps pulling

it tight. It makes it much more difficult to undo for him, but I

would imagine that if I was trying to get him out of his seat

quickly then it would not take me much longer to undo.

All it is - is one of those velcro straps with a figure on it.

I would love to hear how your trip on NSF went - we umed and ared

about doing that trip and ended up on the tunnel.

Not on coffee at the moment - just ocassionally dipping in to make

sure that I am not missing too much.

We only got back from holidays on Sunday and Mum went into hospital

for an operation today so time is a little short. I will be back to

normal ASAP!

Trisha

SAHM to 3 boys

[Guest guest]

> I would love to hear how your trip on NSF went - we umed and ared

> about doing that trip and ended up on the tunnel.

It was an excellent crossing which I would thoroughly recommend. I don't know

how it compares with tunnel/channel port crossings pricewise, but it was

fabulous not to have to drive the length of England. I waved as we passed you!

I have written a bit about it in my online diary at

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/lrgarland/family/Diaryx.html

> We only got back from holidays on Sunday and Mum went into hospital

> for an operation today so time is a little short.

I hope she is recovering well.

Lynda

SAHM to (8), (6), Fraser (3), Callum (15/5/00)

Newsletter editor, Mid-Northumberland Branch

Area Rep, Region 7

www.familygarland.co.uk

[Guest guest]

> First job since we came home has been to try and find some way of sorting

this

> problem. And I think I have the answer - the US Britax site has an

accessory

> called a chest clip which keeps the two shoulder straps together and would

sort

> us out perfectly. I have contacted Britax to find out if it is available

over

> here and was told that it's not, it doesn't meet UK safety standards

because it

> delays getting the child out of the seat in an accident and could cause

damage

> to the child's chest. Fine, I take the point, but at the moment my child

is

> going to be through the windscreen with damage to lots of bits I imagine

The car seat we hired in the States came with one of these sort of clips (I

don't know the make). It was very easy to use and would have been easy

enough undo in a hurry. Problem I guess is British emergency services/

anyone else helping at an accident may not be used to them.

DD1 is very good about keeping her straps on, fortunately, but we live down

the kind of country lane where you stand on the brakes often enough that she

gets frequent reminders of why they are there.

However' such logic is almost certainly lost on a one year old, so I tend to

agree with you that a clip of some sort wins over unrestrained child and

distracted driver. As for 3rd parities being able to release it in a hurry I

guess it needs to be as simple as possible and may be red like all seat belt

release buttons.

Sue Hutchinson, Mum to 30/01/98 and Isobel (HB) 23/02/01