Rear Facing til 2..

Baylor

New member
I just wanted to bring this up because I feel like there is a lot of people pushing their own rfing limits on people and not posting in an informational but emotional way.

The recommended rear facing minimum is 2 years old.

I understand that some people here rear face until 4 or even more. That is great for you, especially if you can afford the seats that have the highest rfing limit or knew enough originally to buy a high weight rear facing convertible.

But in the real world?, rfing to 2 is an amazing feat. I know very few people irl who have made it past 1.
I always encourage people that I know or meet to go with 2 as a rfing min, but if I said to them they had to do it to 3 or 4? PLEASE, they would smack me down.

I see more post where someone comes for a recommendation for a seat to ff their 2 yr old and they are met with an attitude and treated like they are ff a 6 month old.

I have sent many people here to find out more about safety and why rear facing til 2 is so important.

I know I am not a tech, I know I don't know as much as many many of you. But I am learning. And one thing I have learned is pushing the envelope too far leads to a dismissal of the information.

It really would be great if people were praised for their rfing til 2 and then maybe additional information if you feel passionate about erf and it put in a way that was informational not confrontational.

" Good job on rfing until 2!! We actually rearfaced dd til 3 because there is data that shows it may be safer rfing longer than 2. So glad you are here!! "

NOT

" I would never ff a 2 yr old, children should be rfing til 4. No matter the cost or convenience... "


I think it is awesome that some people buy MTs to rf til 5 but that is not in everyones budget or even practical. MY 2.5 yr old was 43 lbs. I wanted to rf him again but it was completely out of my budget to get a seat that would rf him longer. Im going to buy a radian for 3 lbs? No..

So maybe we could be a little more accepting and happy with people for reaching the min and not pushing them so hard we lose them.? :love:
 
ADS

carseatcoach

Carseat Crankypants
I agree that people should not be shamed for choosing to forward-face at age two (or putting 5yo-7yos in boosters), but I also think there's nothing wrong with encouraging people to shoot for something beyond the minimum.

(And if you have a 45# 2yo, you have gone beyond the minimum and achieved the best practice point of RFing to the limits of the seat.)
 

Baylor

New member
I agree but I don't see encouraging, I don't see positive comments. I see pushing and negativity and criticism.. That is my concern. I want people to keep their kids restrained correctly but I feel like all the negative comments leads people to think we are crazy and zealots and then they walk away from great information

ETA: I rf'd til about 16 months. I turned him before coming here and realizing how important it was to rf til 2.
 

Baylor

New member
hrice, See I don't agree.:eek: I believe that it seems better to enforce the current recommendations and to make sure people are legally and correctly transporting their kids.

Then encourage them to maybe rf longer with good information and evidence and experience.

But I think especially for new people, its important to praise the 2 yr rfing, then give them some more info.. Telling them that 4 should be their minimum is not realistic for many. So why not make sure that 2 yr old is in a good proper seat?

ERF is a personal decision, 2 yr min is the recommendation and not even the law right? At least not every where.


ETA: For the record this thread is not to make trouble or stir anything up. I really am concerned at the responses some people are getting when they come tell us they rf til 2 and get responses that in my own humble and lay opinion are really not helpful but damning and critical.
 

gigi

New member
2 is not the bare minimum. 1 is the legal minimum...THAT is the bare minimum. 2 is a RECOMMENDATION that surpasses the bare minimum. Yes, I know it is safer to RF longer, but most people aren't even aware of that recommendation and are offended by people shaming them for putting a 25 month old in a Frontier or Nautilus or even FF Scenera.

I am not a tech either, but I do believe a 2 year old is very safe in a properly installed and correctly used FF seat. If all the 2 year olds in this country were FF in properly used seats, I would be very happy!

Yes, RFing is safer, but a 2 year old is also safe FF when proper use is taught. I think focusing on encouraging people to actually install and use their seats properly is FAR more important than RFing to whenever zealotry because the over the top advocacy of something so outside the norm turns people off completely to CPS. I think both should be mentioned and encouraged, but parents coming here for advice should not be shamed or belittled for their choice to FF.
 

BrookysMommy

New member
I think part of the reason people follow the minimum is because its what information they have. People dont have the information that rfing is safer for older babies and toddlers. Its only available if you go searching for it. Doctors dont even reccomend rfing til two sometimes.
If the information was more open to the general public, I believe that more people would rf longer. Info at stores that sell car seats, techs at stores, more seat checks and booths at public fairs are just a few things that I can see getting the info out more.
 

atw

New member
Baylor said:
That is not what that says to me. They show a ff child in the 1-3 age bracket.

But the text says "until the seat is outgrown rf" or something.

It's important distinction, 1 used to be the minimum and few went past it. Now 2 is min rec and it's an accomplishment to get there for most. But, it's STILL the recommendation to the limits of the seat even after the child is 2. That's the part people ignored with the 1 year old rec too.

Sent from my iPhone using Car-Seat.Org
 

Baylor

New member
But the text says "until the seat is outgrown rf" or something.

It's important distinction, 1 used to be the minimum and few went past it. Now 2 is min rec and it's an accomplishment to get there for most. But, it's STILL the recommendation to the limits of the seat even after the child is 2. That's the part people ignored with the 1 year old rec too.

Sent from my iPhone using Car-Seat.Org

I agree. I think my concern is more about the tone of the responses along with the information.
 

carseatcoach

Carseat Crankypants
That flyer very clearly states: "Keep your child rear-facing as long as possible. Your child should remain in a rear-facing car seat until he or she reaches the top height or weight limit allowed by your car seat's manufacturer. Once your child outgrows the rear-facing car seat, your child is ready to travel in a forward-facing car seat with harness."

No ambiguity, nothing about age 2.

As I wrote, I do not support shaming parents who have chosen to forward-face at age 2, but there is no argument that it is "best practice" (unless the child has outgrown a rear-facing seat) and we shouldn't be promoting it as such.
 

Baylor

New member
Birth – 12 months
Your child under age 1 should always ride in a rear-facing car seat.
There are different types of rear-facing car seats: Infant-only seats can only be used rear-facing. Convertible and 3-in-1 car seats typically
have higher height and weight limits for the rear-facing position, allowing you to keep your child rear-facing for a longer period of time.
1 – 3 years
Keep your child rear-facing as long as possible. It’s the best way to keep him or her safe. Your child should remain in a rear-facing car
seat until he or she reaches the top height or weight limit allowed by your car seat’s manufacturer. Once your child outgrows the
rear-facing car seat, your child is ready to travel in a forward-facing car seat with a harness.


That is not til 4. That is to the limit of the seat. If they bought a short shelled seat that could be before 2.

The legal limit is 1. My point is not to debate when to ff. IT is to encourage the right tone and information with new posters asking for info about their 2 yr old.
 

T4K

Well-known member
What is legal about 1? Just the car seat manufacturers' limits themselves?

Not all states have rearfacing specifics in their laws.
 

carseatcoach

Carseat Crankypants
What is legal about 1? Just the car seat manufacturers' limits themselves?

Not all states have rearfacing specifics in their laws.

Yes. A few states have rear-facing clauses, but most states do have proper use clauses, and almost all seats do not allow forward-facing before age 1.
 

atw

New member
Baylor said:
I agree. I think my concern is more about the tone of the responses along with the information.

Ah. But people are who they are! Many ppl here respond to dozens of posts a day. I've never found it to be shaming, just succinct. I think it's 100% fair to address those posts, right then. And please do. We want a welcoming community with good oinformation. But we can't stop disagreement about parental decisions nor should we. We can't seem to support something known to be MUCH less safe. Five times ain't trivial, IME, so we shouldn't water that message down.

Sent from my iPhone using Car-Seat.Org
 

lovemy2kidstw

New member
atw said:
But the text says "until the seat is outgrown rf" or something.

It's important distinction, 1 used to be the minimum and few went past it. Now 2 is min rec and it's an accomplishment to get there for most. But, it's STILL the recommendation to the limits of the seat even after the child is 2. That's the part people ignored with the 1 year old rec too.

Sent from my iPhone using Car-Seat.Org

Some kids will outgrow RF seats before they are 2 & then they are safe in a properly installed & used FF seat.

Most people in my area, go from the infant bucket to a scenera or tribute which will get most kids close to 2 RFing. Sadly most people turn their kids FF when they outgrow the bucket, even if that is as young as 6 or 7 months.

I have seen quite a few posts where new members are asking for advice for recommendations for a new seat for their 2 or 2.5 yr old & people are shoving ERF down their throat. I have also seen a post where someone was asking for a FF seat recommendation for a 25lb 2 yr old & one person said they would recommend any FF seat for a child that young because it wasn't safe. There is a right way to deliver information & a wrong way. When people are pushy & try to force their own RF agendas on people, it leaves a bad taste in your mouth.

When I first started coming to this site, people were really helpful & I have learned a lot from everyone. Here lately, it seems to be that if you don't RF until 3-4, then you are a failure.

I had to turn my DS FF last week & he is only 22 months old. Everyone IRL doesn't see the big deal, but when I come here people should understand how I feel. Instead of saying congrats for making it that long, some people threw out the statistics at me. I know the statistics, I am a tech. Also, I guess other posters don't believe that my son had actually outgrown his seat because I posted a picture 8 weeks ago & everyone thought he would have a year left. That is just one example of why I haven't been around here lately.
 

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