Is there a way to get around Russ?

Stelvis

New member
I've been having an ongoing issue with my Radian 65SL strap being loosened by my 2.5 year old (RF). I know some people have had issues with it loosening on its own -- as far as I can tell, mine only happens when he directly kicks down on it. Obviously I now have it in with the seatbelt, and it's fine, but I'm so irritated with SKJP and how they've handled it. First Russ told me to just duct tape it and that they've never heard of that problem before. The next time I called back I insisted on someone other than Russ, and I got a very nice and professional customer service supervisor named Susan. They've sent me two replacement straps, both of which they swore up and down would not have the same issue, but of course they did. I made a video of the third strap and how I could loosen it with one finger pressing down from the same angle as my son's foot, and sent the video to Susan, and then sent them all three straps back so they could do "further testing." I swear if they don't resolve this, I will put the video on YouTube.

At this point I just want my money back and to buy another seat.

However last night I found out from Susan that she couldn't make any decisions without consulting her manager, who is, you guessed it, Russ. Is there someone higher up than Russ that I can ask for? Does anyone have any names?

Thanks so much.
 
ADS

Stelvis

New member
Thanks, I did already file a complaint with the NHTSA based on previous advice from this board! And I told SKJP I was doing so....
 

Leighsah

New member
I guess I should file a complaint as well....same problem here. Definitely loosened from his foot though and not by itself. I didn't even bother calling SKJP because of what I have read on here and just installed with the seatbelt....problem is I prefer the LATCH strap install in my car. Blah.
 

SafeDad

CPSDarren - Admin
Staff member
In the past, threads regarding issues with specific company customer service issues have often been locked or deleted, as they typically go off-topic with bashing of particular representatives. That is unfortunate, because otherwise these types of threads can be very helpful to other customers trying to find a resolution. Also, many manufacturers monitor these forums, and I know from past comments that threads that become rude attacks on customer service representatives are generally dismissed altogether as being highly subjective with little other information that merits any type of consideration.

So, please keep this thread and others like it polite and factual, as it is so far!
 

Stelvis

New member
That is good to remember, Darren. While I'm currently frustrated, I have no interest in bashing an individual, only in getting my problem resolved, and hopefully prodding SKJP to redesign their straps so that other people don't have the same thing happen! I think SuperLATCH was a great idea in theory, it's just not working in practice in some situations.
 

LISmama810

Admin - CPS Technician
I would ask about it on their Facebook page (in a nice way). Companies usually don't like negative publicity.

And for anyone who has this problem and hasn't already done so, report to NHTSA!!!
 

Stelvis

New member
I did post on Facebook about a week ago, and received no reply. They didn't delete it either. I notice that they generally don't respond to other people who post questions on their wall. I wonder if they have their Facebook settings set in such a way that they don't automatically get notified when people post? It seems odd.
 

bree

Car-Seat.Org Ambassador
Sunshine Kids recently started using a Twitter account. If you go to their Following page, they have a bunch of staff members' accounts listed, too. Some are engineers, and some are customer service staff. Maybe you might get a response from the main account, but you could also try contacting the individuals as well.

I've had some responses from some of the staff on there (although not necessarily correct ones, FWIW). I'm not sure where exactly the people are in terms of company hierarchy, but it may be worth looking into if you aren't getting any responses via other means.

ETA: This link is to the Twitter account of another one if the SK engineers that doesn't seem to be listed on the SK main page, but he participated in a Twitter chat event about a month ago.
 

SafeDad

CPSDarren - Admin
Staff member
That is good to remember, Darren. While I'm currently frustrated, I have no interest in bashing an individual, only in getting my problem resolved, and hopefully prodding SKJP to redesign their straps so that other people don't have the same thing happen! I think SuperLATCH was a great idea in theory, it's just not working in practice in some situations.

Your post was perfectly fine and will be helpful to others in a similar situation! My comment was only to prevent your thread from going the direction other similar ones have gone in the past:)
 

Stelvis

New member
Could a CPST please watch this video I made of my SL strap problem and tell me I'm not crazy? I am so furious right now I can barely see straight.

http://youtu.be/tE4c6YKu8_w

Here was Russ's response:

I am sending back to you today by Fed Ex (tracking # 8726 4992 1799) a lower anchor strap (see attached file) that I have inspected and tested with Radian installed RF in a car. It is actually one of the straps that I received back from you. I have seen your video and it appears from the movement of the buckle that the lower anchor strap may not have been secured tightly - if the strap is not tight, tilting/releasing the mechanism requires significantly less force/effort than when the strap is tight. After you receive the lower anchor strap, please re-install RF and I am confident that you will find with the strap tightened securely, that your installation will be secure.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.
 

Stelvis

New member
I tried repasting the link in -- see if it works now.

So, I'm not crazy? That starts out tight, right?

Russ's response that he tried it in "a car" is the problem. It works in some cars, it just doesn't work in MY car. Instead of trying to fix the problem, I'm being blamed.
 

kalamos23

New member
I don't know if this is even possible, but can you turn the latch buckle so it is on the door side and sit him outboard? He may not be able to get his foot in between the door and the seat to get to the buckle then. I don't have a car with latch so I'm not even sure if that would work, but if it can, I'd probably do that until you can get things resolved with SKJP.

Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using Car-Seat.Org
 

Stelvis

New member
I don't know if this is even possible, but can you turn the latch buckle so it is on the door side and sit him outboard? He may not be able to get his foot in between the door and the seat to get to the buckle then. I don't have a car with latch so I'm not even sure if that would work, but if it can, I'd probably do that until you can get things resolved with SKJP.

Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using Car-Seat.Org

That was actually the first thing I tried, before I even called SKJP. Then I tried blocking it with the fold-down cupholder that's in the center. It took him about 20 minutes to figure it out each time, take off his shoe, and fit his bare foot down in there and push down on the buckle. Frankly I'm not driving around anymore with my kid and an SL belt because I'm too afraid of what could happen.

In the meantime, I have it installed with the seatbelt (SKJP has all my LATCH belts now anyway).
 

Baylor

New member
I really don't see why you should have to find ways to make this safe. That is absolutely an issue. A car seat should be made so that a child sitting in the chair can not compromise the install. I also don't see how duct tape would have worked at all.

I think there has to be some way to fix this. I am positive that this is probably happening to more parents that are less car seat savvy and they are driving around with loose seats.

I am sorry. I would be mad too.
 

LISmama810

Admin - CPS Technician
When you get the LATCH strap back from him, try it again. It will likely fail again. At that point, report it to NHTSA again, along with Russ's email reassuring you that it's safe.
 

Stelvis

New member
RE the Twitter -- I did tweet the link to SKJP's main twitter account; unfortunately it looks like the individuals who are SKJP employees all have privacy settings on their twitter accounts such that you can't tweet them unless they're following you first.
 

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