Germany - Any relevant links?

Brigala

CPST Instructor
I have an acquaintance who is living in Germany and expecting her first baby. I was thinking I could send her some links which might get her thinking about possibly bringing a car seat over from the US or picking one up from Sweden when her babe gets too big to RF in any of the German seats (if I understand correctly, they're all designed to RF a kid to about age 9 months or so, right?).

Especially since I know very little about car seats in Europe and, even if I did, I wouldn't want to come off as a know-it-all, I thought maybe I'd just send her some links... surely there are people in Europe (outside of Sweden) who advocate ERF (at least, beyond 9 months). I know there's a FB group about it in Australia. Does anybody have any good resources I could point her to that would be relevant to Germany? It doesn't necessarily have to be in English. She speaks Russian and German as well.

Or should I just suggest she come over here and ask her own questions?
 
ADS

MumOf3

New member
I know they use the Maxi-Cosi car seats throughout Germany, which are also sold in Sweden for their kids, who as you probably know sit ERF until they are 5 or even 6 years old. You could send her this link. I bet she would be familiar with the Maxi-Cosis. http://www.carseat.se/store.html

I was thinking about getting the Maxi-Cosi Mobi myself until I found the Diono Radian :) If I was living in Germany, that would be a perfect option after baby grows out of the infant carrier, because it's RF weight limit is 55 pounds - Awesome!

Would you be able to send me the link to the Facebook page you mentioned that advocates ERF in Australia? I can't seem to find it. Thanks :)
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
Is she US Military (or married to it?) If not, a US seat will not be legal there. Whether she is or not, a Scandinavian rear-facing seat IS an option and a legal one (most of them shouldn't be used until the bucket is outgrown. Speaking of buckets, make sure she has some information on why side-facing carrycots are not as safe as rear-facing seats- there was a good thread here on it at one point if you wanted a round discussion on that.) She will probably need to special-order or mail-order it, though.

UK based but has great forums for discussion of various European ERF seats (it's in English though, so she may be more comfortable with the German-language links above): http://www.rearfacing.co.uk
 

T4K

Well-known member
ketchupqueen said:
Is she US Military (or married to it?)

This made me LOL.

Because its true...if you are married to a service member it's like being married to the whole darn military.
 

Adventuredad

New member
You can find lots of general in formation about rear facing at CarSeat.se (Disclaimer; I won the company). Countries in Europe have similar car seat safety habits as US. The main issue in Germany is that most parents turn their kids forward facing at 9-12 months.
 

robbertbobbert

New member
I don't mean to hijack, but I just wanted to clarify something.

My friend in Germany just had her first baby today (!!!!). Her husband is US military and they are stationed there. Since they are in Germany, but on US Army orders, is it legal for them to use a Swedish seat? Are they sold in Germany or would she still need to import?

She had a US infant seat shipped to her, but just as far as the next step goes I wonder if a Swedish seat is an option.
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
I don't mean to hijack, but I just wanted to clarify something.

My friend in Germany just had her first baby today (!!!!). Her husband is US military and they are stationed there. Since they are in Germany, but on US Army orders, is it legal for them to use a Swedish seat? Are they sold in Germany or would she still need to import?

She had a US infant seat shipped to her, but just as far as the next step goes I wonder if a Swedish seat is an option.

US Military families in Europe may use either US or European seats legally.

If she wants a Swedish seat, yes, she'll be legal to, but she will not likely find one in-store, and will need to either find a store to order it for her or order online and get it shipped to her.
 

robbertbobbert

New member
ketchupqueen said:
US Military families in Europe may use either US or European seats legally.

If she wants a Swedish seat, yes, she'll be legal to, but she will not likely find one in-store, and will need to either find a store to order it for her or order online and get it shipped to her.

Awesome, thanks. They don't know how long they'll be over there so I guess we can't predict how long they'll be able to (legally) use the seat, but I'll let her know it's an option.

Are they as expensive to buy/order in Germany as they are here? I know I've heard they're really expensive to import.
 

Lys

Senior Community Member
I don't mean to hijack, but I just wanted to clarify something.

My friend in Germany just had her first baby today (!!!!). Her husband is US military and they are stationed there. Since they are in Germany, but on US Army orders, is it legal for them to use a Swedish seat? Are they sold in Germany or would she still need to import?

She had a US infant seat shipped to her, but just as far as the next step goes I wonder if a Swedish seat is an option.

US Military families in Europe may use either US or European seats legally.

If she wants a Swedish seat, yes, she'll be legal to, but she will not likely find one in-store, and will need to either find a store to order it for her or order online and get it shipped to her.

Adding to the bold part. As a military member in Germany, you only have to comply to the car seat laws of your home state.
Even though booster use here in Germany is to age 12, if your home state's booster law is 8, you can legally quit using one then.
 

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