Question Are the lay flat systems as safe as infant carriers?

khanbulgarski · Apr 21, 2011

I saw this crash-test video of Britax Baby-Safe Sleeper and was wondering if it shows that the system is safe at least as much as the traditional infant carriers?

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j-_LZPge5E4"]YouTube - Romer Baby-Safe Sleeper crash-test, top view[/ame]

The only crash test I was able to find is a side impact one and I was wondering in a frontal crash wouldn't it cause too much pressure on one of the baby's shoulders for example. I think the roll cage is a plus but will it be enough?

newyorkDOC · Apr 21, 2011

I posted a similar question about a month ago. If you search for titles I think I called them bassinets or cots. Anyway I would personally never use one. The britax seems to perform better than others but most perform very poorly. If you want a roll bar there are various seats that can be used with handle up that serve that function I believe. The cabriofix must be used handle up for instance.

Also there are more videos on YouTube from various angles. Just look under the same user.

khanbulgarski · Apr 22, 2011

Hello,

Thanks for the info. I believe that Side Facing is not Rear Facing. However, in the case of premature babies it is probably a good option at least for the first few months. However, especially in male babies this side impact can cause quite serious injuries. I have mixed feelings- given it is on the market it means it had passed the ECE R 44/04 which means it must be safe, but then again it just doesn't feel quite right.

ketchupqueen · Apr 22, 2011

The only lay-flat option I'd be comfortable using is the Red Castle Sport infant seat, which is a rear-facing seat with an option for babies under (I think) 9 kg to lie flat rather than inclined.

On the market means it passed the standards FOR A SIDE-FACING CARRYCOT. Those standards are much less stringent than those for rear-facing seats.

The Red Castle infant seat had to pass the rear-facing standard, so that's the only one I'd use.

Pixels · Apr 22, 2011

I believe the US standard for side-facing seats is that the baby isn't ejected from the seat and the seat stays attached to the vehicle. That's it, no injury measures.

The only time I would use a lay-flat seat is if my baby did not tolerate a traditional seat. I would also only take baby out of the house when absolutely necessary and try, try, try again for him/her to pass the tolerance test.

ketchupqueen · Apr 22, 2011

I looked up the ECE 44/04 regulation and read it. While a little more stringent than US regulations on car beds, the carrycot regulations exclude it from the majority of tests. It must meet labeling and manufacturing requirement, have a certain buckle and strap strength, have a certain strap width, and the dummy used must stay within a certain area during crash testing which basically means it would not go out of the normal area of the vehicle shell (but might impact the roof in a rollover... *shudder*) The dummy used for testing the carrycots does not have head injury or abdominal penetration sensors/markers as the other child crash dummies do in Europe, so the evaluation of those criteria "must be subjective."

Rear-facing restraints, on the other hand, including the one I listed above which allows use in a lay-flat position, must meet much more stringent requirements.

Really, after reading the regulations I shudder to think of all the babies riding in carrycots because their parents think they're safe because they're approved.

newyorkDOC · Apr 22, 2011

I live in Italy and I honestly doubt most parents here are considering the fact that its EU approved or not. I think a lot figure that so long as it's sold it's ok. What's more frightening is that most hospitals and peds actually recommend using them over buckets due to SIDS prevention.

And while not related, I've read in some italian parenting magazines that RF is ILLEGAL after 9kg! This is not true at all (I looked up the law on the motor vehicle website).

Sometimes I find it hard to believe Sweden is even in the same region honestly. The standards are just worlds apart.

Leche Mami · Apr 23, 2011

newyorkDOC said:
Sometimes I find it hard to believe Sweden is even in the same region honestly. The standards are just worlds apart.

Yes, and you don't have to venture far from Sweden for this to be the case. Next door in Denmark even, there is a big difference from my observations.

Question Are the lay flat systems as safe as infant carriers?

khanbulgarski

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