GP car seat

I have been having some health problems lately, where I need to go to the ER and such. When this has happened, I have had to let my mil babysit my daughter. Due to this I have been considering getting a 2nd seat for her car (if you read my other post I am also considering getting a new first seat).

I haven't let my daughter ride with mil because she isn't a great driver. It scares me when I am in the car with her. Her side mirror was hanging off the car for who knows how long, she says she doesn't use it anyway.

She also doesn't wear a seat belt herself and doesn't totally understand why kids need to wear them ("my kids never did and they're still alive"). But she is starting to get that I don't let my daughter ride with her bc she doesn't have a car seat in her car.

The ride between my house and hers, is about 10 minutes and the speed limit never goes above ~35mph. My mil has never been in any accident.

I was thinking about getting one of those seats with the front cushions, because then she would only need to wrap the seat belt around it. How is the safety on those? I know over here they seem to rate well in tests and people like them, but I am skeptical.

I am open to any suggestions. They have to be easy for an old lady to install, bc knowing her she will take it in and out as she pleases, but tell me the seat has been in the car the whole time. She also hasn't gotten the hang of the puzzle lock or adjusting straps.

Or should I just not let her ride with mil at all?

Oh mil has a peugeot (sp?) 307, not sure of the year. kid is 2.5 ~30lbs ~3'

Great questions


The seat you are describing is called a belt positioning booster, and it is not even a remote option for your two year old. It would be extremely unsafe.


Best practice, a two year old is in a rear facing convertible. Bare minimum, he's in a five point harnessed restraint.


What country are you posting from?

Personally, I'd be hesitant to let her ride with your MIL at all. You say she's a bad driver, doesn't use her side mirrors, and doesn't wear her seatbelt.

Here's a video that illustrates why I would never, never allow my children to ride with someone who was unrestrained. We watched this in my tech class, and I'd never understood so clearly that an unrestrained passenger is not just a danger to herself, but to everyone in the vehicle. (Warning: It's graphic - fake graphic, but still graphic.)

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYpuPZYrd2M"]YouTube- No Seatbelt No Excuse[/ame]

There's UK ad that really hit home for me when realizing what an unrestrained passenge can do If you're on YouTube, search for "Julie knew her killer" (also very graphic - fake graphic).

For me, if I were in your position, the answer would be "never". Someone who does not get seatbelt safety will not drive with my child in the car. I also will not allow any unrestrained people, child or adult, to travel as passengers in my vehicle. That's just not a gamble I'm willing to take.

lil96 said:

I haven't let my daughter ride with mil because she isn't a great driver. It scares me when I am in the car with her. Her side mirror was hanging off the car for who knows how long, she says she doesn't use it anyway.

The ride between my house and hers, is about 10 minutes and the speed limit never goes above ~35mph. My mil has never been in any accident.

Click to expand...

Bolding mine. Mirrors don't generally fall off on their own so I'd be questioning the "no accident" claim.

OP--I think we might need a bit of clarification, as well.

Obviously, you've already answered your own question with regards to whether or not an unsafe driver should be driving your child--absolutely not. Regardless of track history, etc, YOU will not be able to heal and recover while dealing with your own medical problems unless you secure childcare that you can trust 100% to care for your child. Car crashes are the #1 cause of death among children, so if you cannot trust that your child will be safe in the car with someone...then do not let them transport her.

With regards to the type of restraint you can use when other people are transport your child--you're in Europe, correct? You do have another "cushion" type option there that is approved for children who're younger and smaller and involve restraining them with the seatbelt.. Such as the Römer Vario. Seats such as these are appropriate for your child's age and weight, and would be appropriate in situations where you have some concerns about the driver's ability to properly use a harnessed restraint. Most 2 year olds can be trained to properly restrain themselves in such a seat. However--booster cushions such as the TurboBooster both in lowback and highback mode are really an unsafe choice for a 2.5 year old child. I wouldn't use them under the age of 4, and even 4 is really too young to use such a seat full-time. So please try to clarify which seat you had in mind, since it's difficult for us to know what you have available in your area.

-Nicole.

I meant one of these type cushion seats
[ame="http://www.amazon.de/Cybex-50050014-Pallas-Design-Raven/dp/B002SW4QB2/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&s=baby&qid=1267168195&sr=1-16"]Cybex 50050014 - Pallas Design Raven - black: Amazon.de: Baby[/ame]

or

http://www.kiddy.de/gb/infinity-pro

I know they aren't the best choice, but when taking use error into consideration, I thought they'd be better than a regular seat.

My mil's mirror fell out of the case, bc her bf tried to deice her car one day and pushed it out of place.

I hadn't thought about mil being a damger to her. I forget about that sometimes. I have seen that PSA about the unrestrained passenger killing the other person.

I worry bc my mil is that type person, that if she needs to go somewhere and I am not around, she would just put my daughter in the car, at least if she had a seat in her car that would be better than nothing. Letting my mil take care of her is really my last resort and it stresses me out more than anything. I always expect the worst case scenarios from her, well not the absolute worst, but close. I know that I don't want her to ride in the car with mil, but sometime it might have to lead to that. I would rather be prepared for it than not be.

I am hoping that if I take her to the local baby store to shop for seats (pretending it is for me) the saleperson can tell her about the safety of car seats and she will realize they have a reason.

I think that often times, us North Americans forget that you have those types of seats because we do not. They are appropriate for your age/size of child. They also do reduce misuse quite a bit, and a smart 2 year old can be trained to use it properly when with other people.

Having said that..it's not the seat that's an issue--as a parent, if you're not comfortable with the person transporting your child...well, I personally would come up with alternatives. I rarely let anyone drive my children anywhere, and I would never forgive myself if something were to happen.

-Nicole.

If you absolutely do not have an alternative person, which it sounds like you are saying, then I would most definitely get the easiest to properly use seat available. Those seats with the energy absorbing shield are suppose to be very safe- perhaps even safer than a 5 point harness. I would look at the Britax/Romer Vario (Britax Laptop) if it is still available because it does not require a booster, therefore there is less to mess up.

If you can, I would see if you can sit down your MIL and show her some videos of what happens when a person is unrestrained. This one is a real life accident [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKDFW1k0RP0"]YouTube- Wear your seatbelt- Car accident[/ame] (he survived). My mom didn't buckle up for YEARS, but now buckles up almost 100% of the time when the kids are in the car (she sometimes forgets). A big part of it is because I showed her the video I just linked to, and she saw what her body could do in a crash to a child in the back seat.

I feel like I am stuck between my American way of thinking and the EU way of life, if that makes sense. Because those seats sort of scare me. I have seen their crash video, scary.

I have shown her videos on the computer and she gasps and says oh no, etc, but she doesnt' get it. In a perfect world, I would never never let my kid in the car with her, but I want to be prepared. I used to worry she just didn't understand me due to languages, but having heard my husband say the exact say things to her that I have, I believe it all goes in one ear then gets lost somewhere.

She has luckily never been in an accident, but has gotten several tickets for not wearing her seat belt. When she rides in the car with me, I won't move the car until she buckles up. I used to assume she buckled, then the alarm would go of and I would pull over until she put it on. It really bugs her when I do it, I keep hoping one day it will click and she'll buckle on her own. I have even seen her "pretend" to buckle her belt. I think really?? what good is that? who does she think she's tricking?

are there any other really easy seats? all I can think of are those type seats.