do booster seats expire?

amyg530

Active member
i get that car seats are only good for about 6 years and ive seen the crash tests but what about booster seats? they dont have harness straps so do they expire?
 
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scatterbunny

New member
The official answer is yes, booster seats expire.

I do not necessarily agree with it, because like you said, no straps to rip out of a shell, the booster is just a hunk of plastic boosting the child up to fit adult belts properly.
 

skaterbabs

Well-known member
Yes, the do expire. They don't take the same KIND of force as a harnessed seat in a crash, but they do absorb *some* force. I would not use an expired booster.
 
Some car seat manufacturers give an expiration date to all of their car seats, reagardless of crash force use. Expiration of car seats is based on several factors, one of which is degradation of the plastic due to temperature cycling. A six year expiration date is a conservative estimate of when plastic strength begins to degrade. Some manufacturers have 8 year expirations. It is best to check the manual of your particular brand, or sometimes, as with some Evenflos and Gracos, the back of the seat will have a stamped expiration stating "Do not use this seat after x date."

Boosters do not expire for the same reasons applied to convertible or infant seats. The issue with the harnessed seats is that the plastic where the harness is threaded takes a tremendous amount of the crash force during a crash. If the plastic has become brittle (something that can not be seen with the naked eye), then there is a possibility of the harness ripping out of the seat back during a crash and essentially freeing the child from the harness.

This issue is not a factor with Boosters. Particulary, a backless booster, which does nothing more than position a child higher in the seat so that the lap and shoulder belt are positioned correctly. Some have argued that a high back booster takes or absorbs some crash load. However, to my knowledge, there is no hard evidence for this view. The seat belt takes the crash load when children are in a booster. Crash forces are directed forward in the most common type of crash, away from the booster. Indeed, that is why boosters are supposed to be light weight so that they do not apply additional load to the back of the child (as they are not attached in any way to the car). There may be some exceptions, as there are to any view.
 

skaterbabs

Well-known member
I disagree. Part if the purpose of the booster is to lesson the force on the immature hip bones of a child - so the booster dos absorbg siginifcant force, especially if we're talking about a LOW-back booster in which the "armrests" are really belt guides.
 
As I have been unable to find information relating to boosters absorbing force, where is the information that the booster takes force away from hip bones. This just doesn't seem logical to me. If the child is moving forward in a crash, the hips will impact the seat belt, and there would be no forward force caused by the child's weight that is reduced or taken up by the arm rests (as the booster is moving in the same direction as the child). The object that is stopping the child is the seat belt. Load would likely be measured at the points of impact, the child's hips and chest.

The whole point of a booster is so the seat belt can do the job it is supposed to do, keep the passenger in the vehicle and ride down the crash force. A booster positions the occupant correctly, so the seat belt works properly. Absent additional features, such as side impact protection (which might degrade) a general booster seat should not expire.
 

Jeanum

Admin - CPS Technician Emeritus
Staff member
I disagree. Part if the purpose of the booster is to lesson the force on the immature hip bones of a child - so the booster dos absorbg siginifcant force, especially if we're talking about a LOW-back booster in which the "armrests" are really belt guides.

:yeahthat:

As we've touched on in other recent threads on this topic, if belt positioning booster seats truly do not expire, then seat manufacturers would/should make that distinction in their expirations FAQs. If I don't see a different expiration spelled out for BPBs in writing from the manufacturer, then I assume they expire just like the harnessed seats do. :twocents: I wouldn't recommend using a BPB past the manufacturer's specified expiration period any more than I would use an expired harnessed seat.
 

my3girls

New member
I believe booster seats expire. We received one for free about 4 years ago from TRU for buying $75 worth of merchandise. It *looks* to me like it could have had a shield at one time and they didn't bother to change the mold when they quit making shield boosters. ANYWAY, I can't find a DOM or expiration date on it. Any suggestions? It's made by Cosco, could I call them with the model # and they would know the DOM? I wanted to give it to a friend, but I can't until I find out more about it.
This is what I think it is, but w/o the shield
Shield.jpg

TIA!
 

southpawboston

New member
Some have argued that a high back booster takes or absorbs some crash load. However, to my knowledge, there is no hard evidence for this view. The seat belt takes the crash load when children are in a booster. Crash forces are directed forward in the most common type of crash, away from the booster. Indeed, that is why boosters are supposed to be light weight so that they do not apply additional load to the back of the child (as they are not attached in any way to the car). There may be some exceptions, as there are to any view.

If the child is moving forward in a crash, the hips will impact the seat belt, and there would be no forward force caused by the child's weight that is reduced or taken up by the arm rests (as the booster is moving in the same direction as the child). The object that is stopping the child is the seat belt. Load would likely be measured at the points of impact, the child's hips and chest.

The whole point of a booster is so the seat belt can do the job it is supposed to do, keep the passenger in the vehicle and ride down the crash force. A booster positions the occupant correctly, so the seat belt works properly. Absent additional features, such as side impact protection (which might degrade) a general booster seat should not expire.

agreed.

basically, i don't think you can say yes or no to the expiration date question without consulting the specific booster manual, or contact the mfr. if the manual does not indicate an expiration date, and there is none stamped in the booster, then i would feel safe that there is no expiration date. if there were, why wouldn't it be stamped and/or mentioned in the manual?
 
I agree. Always check the manual and or the seat. Abide by what is posted. However, a blanket statement that boosters expire, without foundational background to support the statement, may lead to loss of credibility which we should all avoid. :)
 

skaterbabs

Well-known member
I agree. Always check the manual and or the seat. Abide by what is posted. However, a blanket statement that boosters expire, without foundational background to support the statement, may lead to loss of credibility which we should all avoid. :)

While that is true, most boosters do have expiration dates so it's not a blanket statement. In fact, to my knowledge there are only two that do NOT have them. (Recaro and the institutional Evenflo backless.)
 

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